Leave the driving to them


   WE'RE HEADING to Cuba soon. And for the first time in a long time, we haven't booked a rental car.
   It's not that I fear to drive there, though I'd certainly want to be cautious, given the experiences of Cody LeCompte, the young Canadian forced to remain on the island after a traffic accident until public and government pressure helped win his release (see Driving In Cuba Reconsidered).
  It's more about the money. Last year we paid nearly $400 for a subcompact for three days. (I see the rates have dropped a bit since, probably because of the strength of the Canadian dollar).
  Following the advice of the Cuba hands on TripAdvisor and the more prickly types at the (well named) Thorn Tree travel forum, we'll probably hire someone with a car — not an official taxi — to take us where we want to go. It should be cheaper than a rental, and will certainly be interesting.
  In fact, we did just this — hired a car and driver — on our first visit, years ago. He brought us to an overpriced restaurant and other places that, we realized later, no doubt gave him kickbacks. We bought him lunch, too. Es Cuba.
 Or maybe we'll just rent a car when we get there.

Road-ready, if not quite reassembled.

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