02.28
I actually went to Cayo Guillermo, Cuba and stayed at the Iberostar Daiquiri a few weeks ago. I booked the all-inclusive package with Sunwing, through itravel2000. I don’t know about you, but I think traveling is a big deal for a vegan. You need to make sure you’ll be able to eat at your destination, let alone along the way there. A week before departure I called itravel2000 to ask about an in-flight vegan meal. The rep I spoke with dismissed my request, saying that I should just bring food. “It’s such a small amount of food anyway”, she said. Unfortunately I didn’t listen to my gut and, sure enough, there were special meals being served in the air. Talk about disappointing.
Now, an all-inclusive in Cuba, food-wise, has pretty limited choices for vegans. Generally, innocent things like rice are flavoured with pork or spiked with verboten ingredients. That’s why it’s very important to do your homework about the hotel/resort and read all available reviews about your hotel’s breakfast, lunch and dinner situations, no matter if the people writing them are veg*n or not. I fared ok; there were fries, breads, fruits and salads. There was even a pasta bar at dinner where you could have a dish made fresh with tomato sauce and assorted veggies. It got repetitive eating the same things for 7 days, but this is a common mantra in any Cuba vacation recap you read.
I did bring a supply of food, however: 7 cans of Tartex veggie paté, 9 CLIFS builder’s bars, 14 Primal jerky strips and several packets of Juvo meal replacements — good enough for 2 people. The veganessentials order arrived just in time, and it only took up a quarter of the space in my suitcase. It might seem a bit extreme to bring food to an all-inclusive, but it makes a difference. I also recommend bringing your vitamins and supplements (which you should be taking daily any way!)
I also strongly advise translating the ingredients for all your foods — no matter if they’re in your checked luggage or not — into Spanish and printing it out. It’s easy when you use Google Translate or another online service. The first time I went to Cuba, I had a hard time explaining to the customs lady what the margarine spread I brought was (not sure why I thought I needed that). In the end I blurted out, “vegetale”, as she was waiting for the sniffer dog to come over, and she was satisfied. I had managed to say “vegeteriano” earlier in the “conversation”. Though I was prepared this time, I wasn’t stopped. But better safe than sorry.
Overall, I think we did well, but a vegetarian would have been more than fine, since this place had pancake, eggs and doughnut-making stations at breakfast, plus there was always cheese availble at every meal. And, as a vegan, I couldn’t partake of any of the desserts. A lot of people raved about the cappucinos at the main bar in their reviews but, after testing out the espresso, it was clear that they were only tasting the milk — or they have no idea what good coffee tastes like.
Oh, and the liquor is super cheap there. I brought home a non-branded litre of coffee liquor for just $3. The same amount of Kahlua would have cost nearly $30. Needless to say, I’ve been enjoying vegan White Russians ever since. I’ve also used chocolate soymilk to make what I call a Tanned White Russian — very yummy!
As for my time there, it was nice to get some sun and work on my tan. But it’s damn windy in Cayo Coco! Why doesn’t anyone ever mention that in their review? The wind is almost unbearable, and so annoying that some people make forts out of extra loungers to try and block the wind. If ever I go back to Cuba, I’d like to try the Holguin region. I’m sure, like the Cayo, it’s not as touristy as Varadero.
