I did the Jardines thing two years ago. Here are some notes:
- There is no internet in cuba. There is no internet in cuba. Dont waste your time looking for it. Yes, people will tell you there is, you will buy cards, you will try wifi connections; it doesn't work, because it doesn't work island wise. Forget it. Unplug, disconnect, enjoy, and don't waste valuable hours on a useless endeavour (been there too many times, tried every single route; there is no internet, period)
- The cheapest flights to Cuba from Mexico probably are interjet (wont show up in kayak and such, justo go to interjet.com)
- The nights at havana, I would stay close to Hotel Nacional (not necessarily there, adjust to your budgets/taste, it's called the Vedado area), since you can walk to the old Havana downtown, you are close to the Malecon, and it's a good place for an afternoon exploratory walk. I would avoid Miramar like the plague. But thats me.
- From Havana you have to do a bus ride, can't remember, about 3 hours I think, and then you need to do somewhere around a 3-4 hour boat ride (on the liveaboard already). So basically it's a few days lost between getting there and returning. The bus ride is boring, since it's sort of a tourist trap, stopping at roadside bus stops. Make sure you take some cookies/snacks you like with you from Havana, that would be my reco.
- Once in the Jardines area in your liveaboard, there is a "home base" of sorts; it's called Tortuga, and it's a fixed structure/hotel. You will visit Tortuga once during your week long stay if you chose a liveaboard. That might be the only internet you get (even in havana!), and only good for whatsapp if anything at all.
- You can get up close and personal with the croc, at least the small one which I have forgotten the name (and might not be AS small now hahaha), I think about 2.5 meters. Well, he is very friendly, and not camera shy. BUT, as usual, well, it's still a croc! People don't understand the difference between "used to having people around" vs "im a wild croc".
- Sharks are attracted with chum. You get two types: silky (close to the surface, as in almost at the surface) and caribbean reef (at around 40-60 feet). You can get some awesome shots with the silkies since you can get loads of natural lighting in there. The caribbean reefs require much more lighting work.
- there is algo a goliath grouper hanging around one of the reefs
- lobster dinners in the liveaboard were fantastic. I loved the food.
That's all I can remember right now. I hope you enjoy your trip there!
