travel - Global Exchange

Join us in supporting Cuba through travel, building meaningful connections across borders, and voicing our dissent to the inhumane blockade!

We are excited to invite you on our incredible New Year’s trip to Cuba to celebrate and learn about community, culture, and revolution. We still have a few spots available. Learn more and RSVP here.

Celebrate New Year’s and the 65th Anniversary of the Cuban Revolution with us on this once-in-a-lifetime experience. We’ll spend our days exploring and enjoying people-to-people exchanges with Cubans, visiting community projects, meeting small business owners, exploring urban gardens, touring the fine arts museum, and celebrating the New Year and the Anniversary of the Triumph of the Cuban Revolution with a lovely dinner and music!

On New Year’s Day, we’ll go to the Spanish Colonial town of Trinidad, a designated UNESCO Heritage Site. While in Trinidad, we’ll stroll the cobblestone streets and learn more about the island’s history, including its Afro-Cuban culture. We will then head to Santa Clara and visit the site of the memorial to Che Guevara. We’ll also have a unique opportunity to visit a community gathering where we will meet with Cubans in their neighborhood to learn about how they organize at the local level to support one another.

Now is the time to travel to Cuba! Between the inhumane US blockade and the pandemic, the economic conditions have worsened exponentially, and travel to the island not only supports the local economy but also builds meaningful people-to-people connections.

To view the itinerary for complete details, e-mail us at realitytours@globalexchange.org or call us at 415-575-5527.Register Today

P.S. If you can’t make it on this Cuba trip, plenty more will be added to our 2024 calendar in the next 2 weeks! Including this incredible Cuba Jazz Festival trip.

There are still spots remaining on this year’s annual Day of the Dead trip to Oaxaca, Mexico! Join us from October 28th to November 5th, 2023 to experience one of the most renown Day of the Dead celebrations in the Americas.

Curious about what you might experience? Here are some thoughts from a past participant, Catherine Suarez, a Spanish Instructor at Las Positas College in California who traveled with Global Exchange to Oaxaca.

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Our trip with Global Exchange to Oaxaca, Mexico was more than a typical educational opportunity. The participants were able to actively participate in many authentic aspects of everyday Oaxacan life associated with the preparation for the Days of the Dead. In addition, the group experienced social processes and was able to participate in meetings and workshops about sustainability, indigenous people’s human rights and the historical importance of corn in the Valley of Oaxaca.

Our group leader, Juan de Dios Gómez Ramírez, a Doctor of Sociology, provided us with much more than the basic information about the Valley of Oaxaca, its people and their social struggles. The level of information and the way in which it was delivered resembled a college-level course. I purchased a notebook in the Mexico City airport “in case I needed to take a few notes”. By the end of the study/travel program, I had completely filled the notebook with information that I cannot wait to incorporate into my lessons and future presentations.

We met with several authors and also attended a week-long Book Fair in the Zocalo where we were able to take part in workshops, presentations by authors from different states of Mexico, Cuba and South America, and search for rare and difficult-to-find books. For example, I have been researching Afro Caribbean Peoples, including Afro Cubans, Afro Puerto Ricans, Afro Dominicans and Afro Mexicans. I was able to purchase several books about Afro Cubans and Afro Mexicans at the fair. The Book Fair was dedicated to the memories of Mexican author José Agustín and Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez.

At around midnight on November 1^st, while we were in the cemetery, one observer commented that he “will never view death the same way again.” I think that he spoke for many of the people in the cemetery that night. If I could edit his quote, I would add that our group will “never think about human rights and the importance of sustainability, especially corn, for the people of the state of Oaxaca the same way again.”

Since 1988 our Reality Tours have provided a way for people to travel and build people-to-people ties that enhance understanding and unity around the world. Tens-of-thousands have safely traveled with Global Exchange to destinations near and far (Cuba, Cambodia, Oaxaca-Mexico, the Ecuadorian-Amazon, Iran, South Africa and more) before the coronavirus pandemic forced us to close last March, the first-time-ever in our 30 years of operations.

We are dreaming of traveling again. And we bet you are too! We invite you to take our short survey and tell us where you hope to go once travel opens.

We are hard at work designing new, safe, and community-centered Reality Tours programs. Upcoming Reality Tours programs will examine critical issues like the climate crisis and community resilience, coronavirus impacts and response, protection of land defenders, and more. All our Reality Tours delegations will be designed to keep participants and communities healthy and safe, and we will follow strict Covid-19 safety protocols.

Take a moment and tell us where you want to go; help us design the Reality Tours program of your dreams.

In the coming weeks, and with your valuable input, we will be posting our new 2021 trips — designed with our COVID-19 measures in place and offering our new flexible cancellation policy.

We look forward to traveling with you!

The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation continues to evolve quickly and Reality Tours and our partners are closely monitoring global developments and following the advice of public health authorities, medical experts and officials in the destinations we visit.

In an abundance of caution and in the best interest of our travelers and partners around the world, Reality Tours, based on updated travel guidance from the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention has decided to suspend all trips until the fall of 2021.

This is a difficult situation for everyone, but the health and safety of our travelers and partners around the world is our top priority. We thank you for your patience in these unprecedented times. Please know that we’re here to support you, and, even though travel feels uncertain right now, we look forward to working together to ensure that seeing the world remains a possibility.

Global Exchange is committed to creating people-to-people ties to keep global solidarity strong. And we depend on supporters like you for the work we do to advance human rights, democracy, and a livable planet. Please consider making a donation today, as we face the unique and pivotal challenges of 2020, including an unexpected economic crunch as a consequence of canceling our Reality Tours programs through April. Please help us build global unity and critical people-to-people ties.

September 30, 2017, Havana, Cuba –

Meeting here, RESPECT, the largest association of US organizers of travel to Cuba unanimously rejected the Trump Administration’s Cuba travel warning and its decision to withdraw diplomatic staff from its Havana embassy.

The reaction came in response to Washington’s announcement that it is withdrawing 60 percent of non-emergency staff from the US Embassy in Havana and is warning US citizens to avoid travel to Cuba. The justification for both is unexplained health problems that 21 Havana-based US diplomats have reported.

In addition, unidentified US officials said the US Consulate in Havana would suspend issuing US visas to Cubans, indefinitely. The US Embassy will continue to provide emergency services to US citizens in Cuba.

“Based on the evidence thus far and the fact that the State Department says no other US citizens have been affected, we believe that its decision is unwarranted, and are continuing to organize travel to Cuba and encourage others to do so,” said Bob Guild, RESPECT Co-Coordinator and Vice President of Marazul Charters. He also stressed that US citizens and residents can legally travel to Cuba under US law, and that the State Department advisory in no way prohibits US persons from traveling to the island.

RESPECT is joined by US commercial airlines and others in the travel industry who have publically expressed their intention to continue Cuba travel. Gail Reed, RESPECT Co-Coordinator and MEDICC Founder, noted

“Cuba remains a very safe destination for US travelers.”

The US Foreign Service Association, the powerful union that represents US diplomats around the world, also opposes any decision to withdraw US diplomats from Cuba. Association President Barbara Stephenson says “We have to remain on the field and in the game.”

The US complaint about the health issues originated almost a year ago during the Obama Administration when the two governments were working toward rapprochement. As acknowledged by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the Cuban government responded immediately and initiated an investigation, inviting the US government to cooperate.

At the invitation of Cuban authorities, the FBI went to Havana seeking evidence of what the US described as “sonic attacks” resulting in hearing loss and other symptoms. However, its agents found no devices or other evidence to explain the mystery.

None of the 500,000 US visitors to Cuba this year have reported similar health issues. Tillerson said this week, “We have no reports that private US citizens have been affected…”.

Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez, speaking at the UN this month, reiterated that Cuba takes very seriously the protection of all diplomats in its country and would never cause them harm or allow others to do so, in accordance with the 1961 Vienna Convention. He also urged the US authorities to work more closely and effectively with the ongoing Cuban investigation, a point he raised again during his meeting with Tillerson this week.

Replying to the US move to reduce its diplomatic personnel in Havana, Josefina Vidal, Director General for US Affairs at Cuba’s Foreign Ministry, called the decision precipitous and said it will affect bilateral relations and cooperation in areas of mutual interest. She noted that Cuba had urged the US not to politicize the matter and insisted that Cuba needed the active cooperation of US authorities to arrive at a definitive conclusion.

“We fear that such hasty action by the Trump Administration, independent of scientific evidence, may be motivated by politics rather than concerns for health and wellbeing,” said Walter Turner, RESPECT Co-Coordinator and President of Global Exchange. “Thus, once again we encourage all US visitors to continue to travel to Cuba.”

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Global Exchange is a founding member of RESPECT (Responsible Ethical Cuba Travel). We are a 150-member US professional association of non-profit entities, travel agencies, tour operators and other travel service providers dedicated to practicing and promoting ethical and socially responsible travel to Cuba. Founded in December 2016 on the anniversary of the opening announced by the US and Cuban presidents, RESPECT held a two-day meeting at the Meliá Cohíba Hotel in Havana this week, where its members hammered out a 2017 Action Plan to implement its 17 principles. These include ways US travel organizations and travelers can contribute to protecting Cuba’s environment as it adapts to climate change, commit to non-exploitative relations with all Cubans and respect the country’s cultural heritage and expressions. The Association also defends the right of all US citizens and residents to travel to Cuba, and advocates lifting all US government travel restrictions to the island.

by Seghel Yohannes

I did not know what to expect when I went to Haiti through Global Exchange. Like the majority of other developing nations, the primary U.S. news coverage in Haiti focused on the country’s poverty and devastation due to natural disasters. Haiti was on everyone’s radar in January 2010, the month of its devastating 7.0 earthquake. Multiple western nations, including the United States, pledged millions of dollars in aid toward Haiti. The media response was swift and hopeful, and dozens of high-profile celebrities took advantage of the limelight. Actors and politicians went to Haiti to build houses while camera crews followed them around.

Nearly six years later, Haiti has virtually vanished from U.S. media. I would go so far as to wager a guess that the majority of Americans don’t know that Haiti is currently in the midst of a heated presidential election, which has been rescheduled several times. Haitians have been waiting with bated breath for this moment for years. The current president, Michel Martelly, has been in power since 2011. Haitians have been extremely dissatisfied with his tenure, and he has had several allegations of corruption against him.

Soulouque, myself, and Réa overlooking Haiti

Even less likely to be known is that Haiti has been facing an ongoing cholera outbreak since approximately October 2010, considered one of the worst cholera outbreaks in recent history. Foreign aid workers mostly likely caused this outbreak. MINUSTAH, the acronym of the French translation for the United Nations Mission in Haiti, sent peacekeepers to Haiti in October 2010. The waste from their encampment was transferred to an open area where children and animals had access to it. Shortly after aid workers set up their camp, hospitals in the same region were faced with an increase in deaths from diarrhea and dehydration, symptoms frequently associated with cholera. The UN does not acknowledge responsibility for causing the cholera epidemic in Haiti.

So where did that leave Haiti in March 2015? During my incredible stay there, I met some of the most passionate, driven, independent individuals I have ever known. The most incredible of whom was Madame Réa Dol, a Haitian mother and teacher in her early 50s. For most of her life, she’s facilitated community-driven partnerships with the goals of education reform, medical treatment and prevention programs, and microfinance initiatives. She introduced us to activists, parents, and teenagers who were all fiercely invested in the future of Haiti and were building support systems for themselves and their families through education, innovation, and technology.

A Fearless motorcyclist riding down a typical hilly mountainside

One example of innovation in Haiti is SOPUDEP (Society of Providence United for the Economic Development of Petion-Ville). SOPUDEP is a Haitian-founded and run grassroots organization located in Port-au-Prince. The organization’s Founder and Director is Réa. SOPUDEP’s focus is on providing accessible education to adults and children, supporting children’s and women’s rights, and creating programs of economic empowerment for members of their community. SOPUDEP also works closely with other local organizations to help them achieve these same goals in other communities that face economic and social challenges.

Another example of innovation in education is MOJUB, a literacy circle and community development organization established and run by women in an impoverished neighborhood of the city. MOJUB runs a school for the community, an Internet center (established through international support), and a microcredit program to help women launch income-generating activities.

During my 10-day trip in Port-au-Prince, the gorgeous and bustling capital of Haiti, I was lucky enough to travel with Réa and stay in her home with her family and 25 other American tourists. She built a hostel attachment to her home that travelers can rent out. In addition to her family, her staff and their children also live on her compound.

Delicious beef, rice, beans, vegetables, and salad with amazing local avocados.

I had the heady and breathtaking experience of bearing witness to Réa’s daily life. Her cell phone rang every ten minutes. It seemed as though everyone in Port-au-Prince knew Réa. From finding foster-care placements to helping students at her school afford uniforms, Réa knew everything there was to know. After dinner at Réa’s home, I would hang out with Réa’s son, a budding business guru, the daughter of one of Réa’s drivers, a sweet nursing student solidly focused on her future, and Réa’s adopted 9-year old son, who was fluent in Haitian Creole and Spanish and could easily understand conversational French and English. This little boy was an exacting language teacher, and I credit him for teaching me proper pronunciation when speaking Haitian Creole.

As an American in Haiti, I felt incredibly aware and self-conscious of my ignorance. I speak conversational French and mistakenly assumed that I would be well equipped to communicate with those around me. While French is technically one of the official languages of Haiti, roughly 40% of the population speaks the language. The official language of Creole is primarily spoken in Haiti and is an essential component of wide communication. Haitian Creole is a mix of French, Spanish, Portugese, Taíno, and West African languages, and I had so much fun learning it. Going around with my little journal and scribbling down phrases, I found it was easy to ask those around me for help learning. That was just the beginning. I have so much more to learn and can’t wait to go back. I have so many friends I can’t wait to visit!

Yes, you heard that right. We are offering $200 off select trips this fall using the discount codes listed below.

From Fair Trade in Palestine, to indigenous rights in Mexico, to the Rights of Nature movement in India, this fall we have several great trips that will highlight important issues around the world. Join us as we meet with local leaders and movements to learn about the innovative ways communities and individuals are organizing for social change. Return with a new understanding of the issues and, perhaps most importantly, new ways to engage and support these inspiring movements from home.

But don’t miss out – discount codes expire September 1st!

Cuba: Sustainability and Community
October 10 – 17, 2015
$2,450
Promo Code: CubaGXfall15

During this historic time of change between the US and Cuba, we invite you to join us for a week-long People-to-People trip to learn from Cubans of the amazing work they are doing in and around Havana to create sustainable communities for all. This unique itinerary will look at sustainability via development, restoration, community programing and programs in the arts for the people.

Palestine: Fair Olive Harvest
October 24 – November 3, 2015
$2,500
Promo Code: PalGXfall15

Learn how Fair Trade cooperatives are restoring hope and providing economic alternatives to the Palestinian people. Stay with a local farming family and then harvest olives with farmers who use organic practices. Witness community-building traditions and cultivate a greater appreciation and understanding of Palestinian culture and pride. More importantly, you will learn first-hand from Palestinians about the impact of the occupation on farm lands, the economy, tourism and day-to-day life.

Oaxaca, Mexico: Day of the Dead/Dia de los Muertos
October 28 – November 5, 2015
$1,450
Promo Code: OxGXfall15

If you’ve never been to Oaxaca during its famous Day of the Dead/Dia de los Muertos celebrations, you really should. Join us as we make our annual pilgrimage to Oaxaca at the end of October. Dating back to the Aztecs, this celebration is a family event to remember departed souls and to celebrate the resurrection of their spirits. In addition, explore Oaxaca’s rich culture through excursions to historical archeological ruins, mezcal palenques, and artisan workshops. Meet with local social organizations and indigenous leaders, and learn about fair trade/free trade and globalization in Oaxaca.

India: Rights of Nature

November 1-11, 2015
$2,550
Promo Code: IndiaGXfall15

Travel to and stay at renowned activist and author Dr. Vandana Shiva’s Navdanya Biodiversity and Conservation Farm while learning about rights of nature in India and the power of the seed. While many over the past decades have explored the idea of living in balance with the planet and limiting the role of unfettered corporate power in all aspects of life, the rights-based movement that seeks to change fundamental law and culture is both relatively new and rapidly growing. It has kept pace with the realization that the current corporate-led global economic framework has brought us to the brink of economic and ecological disaster, and that true change will only come from the grassroots.

Venezuela: Community Development

November 21 – 30, 2015
$1,900
Promo Code: VzGXfall15

Travel with Global Exchange to dig past the headlines and explore the changes occurring in Venezuela, Latin America and the hemisphere as a whole. You will meet with human rights activists, rural agricultural workers, labor unions, community activists, journalists, government officials and opposition figures, and see for yourself the unprecedented social change that is occurring at this historic time in Venezuela and the region.

We hope you can take advantage of this great opportunity and travel with us this fall!

Check out our full list of travel opportunities

www.globalexchange.org/reality-tours

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Yes, you heard that right. We are offering $200 off select trips this fall using the discount codes listed below.

But don’t miss out – discount codes expire September 1st!

Cuba: Sustainability and Community
October 10 – 17, 2015
$2,450
Promo Code: CubaGXfall15

Palestine: Fair Olive Harvest
October 24 – November 3, 2015
$2,500
Promo Code: PalGXfall15

Oaxaca, Mexico: Day of the Dead/Dia de los Muertos
October 28 – November 5, 2015
$1,450
Promo Code: OxGXfall15

India: Rights of Nature

November 1-11, 2015
$2,550
Promo Code: IndiaGXfall15

Venezuela: Community Development

November 21 – 30, 2015
$1,900
Promo Code: VzGXfall15

We hope you can take advantage of this great opportunity and travel with us this fall!

Check out our full list of travel opportunities

www.globalexchange.org/reality-tours

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Today, August 1st, is a statewide day of action in California to end fracking and demand clean, not extreme, energy. (Click here to find an action near you.)

Also, in just a matter of weeks, Global Exchange and our allies have gathered over 150,000 signatures demanding an end to extreme oil extraction in California.

Global Exchange is proud to take a stand with the people of California in their fight to stop fracking and protect water, crops, communities and the climate from this dirty and dangerous practice.

Global Exchange has also long stood in solidarity with communities around the world who share the same struggle to stop dirty energy extraction. In that spirit, we’d like to highlight our upcoming travel delegations to Ecuador:

Ecuador: Social and Environmental Justice in the Andes and the Amazon
December 28, 2015 – January 5, 2016
April 22 – May 2, 2016
July 4-14, 2016

Travel to the northern Amazon region to look at the damaging effects of oil and other extractive industries while you experience the breathtaking diversity and beauty of the Amazon rainforest. Learn about the historic ongoing court-battle against Chevron and its toxic legacy of oil exploitation while seeing the oil pits for yourself.

Go to the fabled Yasuní National Park, a UNESCO world biosphere reserve and what many scientists consider to be the most biologically diverse region on the entire planet. Meet with indigenous leaders and healers, and visit ecotourism projects that provide alternatives to extractive industries like oil and logging. Back in Quito, discuss environmental, social, and economic rights with activists and leaders.

Whether in California or Ecuador, the challenge of standing up to the power of Big Oil is real. Let’s stand in solidarity.

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Mexico’s people are confronting daunting challenges. Bad government and the worlds of pain, violence, impunity and the economic injustice brought with it often color the realities of daily life. But so do courage, creativity, and resistance.

That’s why we want to remind you about some special opportunities to travel to Mexico, both to better understand today’s problems as well as the deep wellsprings of culture that give resilience and hope to those struggling for change. We hope your travels will give you the tools and motivation to speak up and speak out about the distorted picture of Mexico painted by our media and politicians. We encourage you to join us on one of these well-organized, safe and exhilarating trips:

Oaxaca: Day of the Dead/Dia de los Muertos
October 28 – November 5, 2015
$1,450

If you’ve never been to Oaxaca during its famous Day of the Dead/Dia de los Muertos celebrations, you really should. Join us as we make our annual pilgrimage to Oaxaca at the end of October. Dating back to the Aztecs, this celebration is a family event to remember departed souls and to celebrate the resurrection of their spirits. In addition, explore Oaxaca’s rich culture through excursions to historical archeological ruins, mezcal palenques and artisan workshops. Meet with local social organizations and indigenous leaders, and learn about fair trade/free trade and globalization in Oaxaca.

Chiapas: Indigenous Rights and Environmental Justice
March 23-31, 2016
August 7-15, 2016
$1,350

Join Global Exchange as we learn about what has motivated popular movements in Mexico. Examine the recent history of the Chiapas region and hear about challenges facing the struggle for indigenous autonomy. Learn about the direct effects of globalization in the context of NAFTA and the on-going efforts for economic justice and democracy. Dialogue with indigenous peasants who have been working for the right to own the land upon which they live and work, and to govern their communities according to indigenous traditions and customs. We will visit with diverse organizations and their representatives in the area: from religious and community leaders to NGOs and women’s cooperatives, all working for peace and stability in the region. From a base in the colonial town of San Cristóbal de Las Casas, our delegation will travel to surrounding communities to speak with indigenous and campesino organization leaders, activists, educators, students, and artisans.

Click here to check out our full list of Reality Tours to Mexico and other countries!

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Travel with us to Cuba!