Gifts For Cuban Women

The myth that Cuban women will sleep with you for trinkets is one that keeps circulating on the internet. And it leads to people frequently sending me weird WhatsApp messages asking what they should ‘bring to Cuba’ as ‘gifts for Cuban women’.

What you should bring to Cuba is easy. I’ve written about it before. You should bring to Cuba the medications outlined in this article.

But if you’re just chasing hookers, you should bring cash and lots of it. Here’s what you need to know about gifts for Cuban women.

Will Cuban Women Sleep With You For Trinkets?

This is a persistent myth on the internet that refuses to fade away. Cuban women won’t sleep with you for t-shirts, small makeup items or any other random junk you’ve brought as ‘lady gifts’.

What all Cubans both need and want is hard currency. Foreign currency that holds its value and not the local funny money that decreases in value daily.

If you gift random junk to a Cuban, any Cuban whether they be a sex worker or not, they will need to sell it. And that takes time and energy. Time and energy that could be better spent chasing and lining up for the items they really need.

If you’re looking to bring gifts for Cuban women whom you just want to sleep with, you should bring foreign currency cash.

That is unless they’re your wife, girlfriend, a particular woman you want to date or a close friend. Only if you have a pre-established connection to the particular individual should bring gifts for a Cuban woman.

Example Gifts For Cuban Women Who Are Friends

I’m friends with a lot of Cuban women. Some are former housekeepers and others are just women I met during my time in Cuba. One is a former AirBnB host I had a crush on and was trying to date.

I take gifts for some of these ladies to Cuba with me. Here’s what I take for each to give you an idea.

For those Cuban women who are just friends I met during my time in Cuba I don’t take anything unless there’s a specific item they need and can’t get. And then I bring it to help them out.

For my former housekeepers I bring small gifts for their kids. Like band t-shirts that are rare in Cuba. And for them I gift cash and perfume. Perfume because it’s something nice they can keep for themselves. And cash because they can use it to get the things they really need.

Now, housekeepers will press for clothing items to be left behind when you leave. But that’s not because they want those items for themselves or their loved ones. It’s so they can sell those items at weekend markets for cash.

Personally I find the idea of an old lady spending her weekend trying to sell my used underwear kind of creepy. So I gift them cash. It saves their weekends and they can go straight out and buy the things they need.

On one trip I even bought my housekeeper a horse because hers had died and that was what she was saving for. They’re always saving money for something that they need.

Find out what they’re saving money for and contribute directly towards that thing they need with cash. Don’t give them old junk they need to sell.

Example Gifts For Cuban Women Who You’re Dating (Or Trying To Date)

As against friends and housekeepers I did take perfume, makeup items and random things for the girl I was trying to date. Along with harnesses and other items for her beloved dogs.

The good normal girls who aren’t sex workers don’t need to be gifted money. Just normal items you’d give your crush in any other country.

And in point of fact if you did just turn up in Cuba to see your crush with some money and no gifts, she’s going to think you believe she’s a hooker.

At which point you’ll get to see just how fiery and angry a Cuban lady can be.

Unlike cash perfume, wine, chocolates and flowers are generally well received. Along with anything that says you’ve been thinking about them, care about them or that compliments their style.

Don’t give your wife, girlfriend, significant other or crush, cash. Get them something nice that says you care about them. Otherwise you’re going to be in the doghouse or dumped.

What To Give Jineteras And Prostitutes?

These types of ladies are only after one thing, money. Jineteras are just ‘gold diggers’ by any other name. I’d strongly suggest avoiding them but to each his own.

Give a jinetera whatever you’d normally gift to a gold digger. But be warned that if your contribution is a small makeup kit or a H&M tee you’re either going to be in the dog house or dumped.

Cuban ‘gold diggers’ want cash, jewellery and luxury brands. Bringing an H&M tee or some other cheap item that isn’t Gucci, Versace, Armani, another luxury branded item or a tech gadget like the latest iPhone is going to get you dumped.

Prostitutes in Cuba are different to Jineteras (gold diggers). Prostitutes just want cash. These ladies are from the lowest rungs of Cuba’s socioeconomic ladder. And they’re sleeping with you out of desperation.

Prostitutes need cash. And in fact they’re not going home with you unless you’ve got cash to pay them. If you don’t give them cash but instead try to pay them with a cheap makeup kit or a H&M tee you’ll likely meet their pimp. And yes, these ladies do have pimps who will get the cash from you if you don’t pay up.

Where Can I Get More Information About Cuba?

I’ve made a Cuba Frequently Asked Questions Page (FAQ) available on this website. And I would strongly advise you to read it before travelling to Cuba. 

My Cuba FAQ page will save you a lot of time and a significant amount of money on your trip to Cuba. Cuba is not the sort of destination in which you can just arrive unprepared. 

Read the Cuba FAQ Page here.