HOW CAN WE HELP?

What is Tour Republic?

Tour Republic is a digital marketplace intended to help Cuban entrepreneurs grown their private travel businesses. On Tour Republic’s website, Cuban entrepreneurs can access a platform to promote their businesses, manage bookings, and connect directly with travelers. We also help travelers who will be visit Cuba explore, book, and rate the experiences offered by Cuban entrepreneurs. In a nutshell, Tour Republic is a new way to know Cuba by the hand of its own people.

Why should I use Tour Republic?

If you are a Cuban entrepreneur, Tour Republic will provide you an unprecedented level of promotion for your services, a secure payment method that guarantees the full payment for your activity in case of no-shows or late cancellations, support to register your activities and increase booking requests, and a community of real clients who may become your best brand ambassadors.

If you are a traveler, in Tour Republic you will access the only one-stop shop you need to visit to find and book the best do in Cuba by using a safe payment method that guarantees the service or your money back.

How can I contact Tour Republic?

You can contact our customer service representatives by writing an email to support@tourepublic.com. You may also send us a message through the contact form in our contact page. We will answer your questions as soon as possible.

How can I register?

To sign up you need to fill out the website registration form with your name and email, or sign up using your Facebook or Google account. You must select if you are registering as a Local or a Traveler.

How do I cancel my account?

You can send an email to support@tourepublic.com requesting to cancel your account and providing the following information:

  • Your username
  • Published experiences

The cancellation may take up to 48 hours to be effective.

Can Tour Republic deactivate my account?

Yes, if you violate our Terms and Conditions Tour Republic may deactivate your account. Please, read our Terms and Conditions for more details.

How do I edit my profile photo?

First, log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, click on Edit Profile and apply any necessary change.

What are profile verifications?

Verifications are Tour Republic’s attempts to verify the identity of a local or a traveler by email, phone, social media or face-to-face contact.

How do I get verifications?

At certain point we may ask you to provide your email, phone number, or a link to any of your social media accounts to verify your identity. If you are a local, our representative in Cuba may also attempt to arrange a meeting with you to ask you about any issue regarding your identity and your experiences.

Who can see my public profile?

Any user who visits Tour Republic, registered or not, can see your public profile.

Why to keep communication and transactions on Tour Republic?

Users registered in Tour Republic must keep communications and transactions on our platform to ensure quality and safety for both parts, locals and travelers.

What methods does Tour Republic use to verify locals’ details?

Tour Republic may use indistinctly face-to-face interviews, emails, phone calls and reviews of social media profiles to verify a local’s identity and their experiences.

Does Tour Republic investigate the locals?

Tour Republic may undertake additional procedures to verify the identity or background of a local by personal meetings, email, phone or social media. Also, reviews of previous clients may help us verify a local’s identity or background.

However, we cannot confirm or endorse any user’s purposed identity.

How do I change the email?

Once you have an account in Tour Republic, you may change your personal information any time you need. First, log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, click on Edit Profile and apply any necessary change. The system will accept the changes immediately and you will start receiving Tour Republic’s communications to your new email.

How do I reset my password?

First, log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, click on Edit Profile. Once there, go to the bottom of the page where it says Change Password.

Immediately after the change, you will receive an email with the new log in credentials.

I forgot my password. What do I do?

Tour Republic may undertake additional procedures to verify the identity or background of a local by personal meetings, email, phone or social media. Also, reviews of previous clients may help us verify a local’s identity or background. However, we cannot confirm or endorse any user’s purposed identity.

How can I find an experience?

You may browse tourism experiences by several categories such as City Tour, Car Tour, Excursion, Dance Lesson, Relaxation, and much more. In the homepage, just select the type of activity you are looking for and click on Explore. We will display all the registered experiences that match with your expectations. To know more about a particular experience, just click on it.

How do I create a wishlist?

You may store your favorite experiences in a wishlist by clicking on the little heart shown in every activity. To access your wishlist, first log in using your credentials and go to My Account, on the top right of any page, and click on Wishlist.

How do I book an experience on Tour Republic?

Our safe booking system guarantees the realization of the experience you requested or your money back! Just click on the Request Booking button displayed in the experience page and submit your billing information. Don´t worry! We won´t bill you until the booking request is confirmed.

Can I book an experience as an US traveler?

Yes, most of our experiences fall within the general licenses approved by OFAC, especially under the Support for the Cuban People general license. However, it is your responsibility as a traveler to ensure that your schedule, including our experiences, are permitted under the license that you're using when traveling to Cuba.

What is Instant Booking?

Instant Booking is a term that means that a reservation for a particular experience is immediately effective on certain dates. That is, there is no need for a booking request since the local has free schedule for such particular dates.

How much time does a local have to respond to my booking request?

Locals have up to 48 hours to respond to a booking request due to the technological limitations in Cuba. Nevertheless, our team and the locals will work hard to answer you as quickly as possible.

How do I know if a local has accepted my booking request?

You will receive and email from Tour Republic within 48 hours confirming or declining your booking request.

If confirmed, you will receive the itinerary summary of the requested experience along with a Booking Number that you must preserve and give it to the local just before performing the experience.

What happens if my booking request is denied or expires?

If the booking request is denied, Tour Republic will try to please you offering similar experiences with other locals. However, you have no obligation to book the suggested activities and won’t be billed for the denied booking request. In any case, you are more than welcome to keep exploring Tour Republic and find another experience that meets your expectations.

How can I get in contact with a Local to obtain more information about the experience?

You can ask any question you have about the experience through the Tour Republic messaging system. We work as a bridge between locals and travelers to facilitate a more effective communication.

Why can’t I call or email a local before booking?

To ensure the safety and quality of the transaction, Tour Republic must function as a bridge between the local and the traveler. Even though we cannot facilitate direct phone calls and emails, you can message the local through the Tour Republic communication system as much as you need.

How can I receive and send messages to locals?

First, log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, click on Inbox. From there you can send direct messages to locals as much as you need.

What happens if I receive an inappropriate message?

You must report it to Tour Republic immediately so we can deal with the issue in no time. Please, send us an email to support@tourepublic.com providing the following:

  • Local’s name
  • Title of the experience
  • Booking date
  • Copy of the inappropriate message

Is the displayed price the final price?

Yes, the displayed price is the final price you will pay, including service fees, commissions or any other applicable fees.

How does Tour Republic process payments?

Once your booking request is confirmed, we will charge you the applicable price.

However, we don’t immediately send the money to the local. Instead, we hold the transaction for up to 24 hours after the experience has taken place to verify that everything went according to the booking schedule and itinerary.

When do I pay?

You submit your billing information when requesting the experience in Tour Republic’s website.

When will I be charged?

You will be charge when the local confirms your booking request.

Will I be charged if my booking request is rejected?

You won’t be charged unless your booking request is confirmed.

What is a Booking Number?

A Booking Number is a number that Tour Republic provides you once your booking is confirmed. You must preserve and give it to the local just before performing the experience. Giving this number to the local is of the upmost importance because it will confirm that the experience took place and the local may collect the payment.

Which payment methods are accepted?

You may pay using your credit card or through PayPal. Please, notice that you don’t need to create a PayPal account to pay for your requested experience. If you have any issue while paying, please send us a message to support@tourepublic.com providing the following:

  • Title of the experience you are interested in
  • Description of the issue or question you have

Can I pay in any currency?

You must pay in American dollars.

Why should I use your payment system to pay the local?

Our payment system guarantees the safety of the transaction. We will take care of the money issues so you can relax and enjoy your vacation. Our safe booking system guarantees the realization of the experience you requested or your money back!

What if a local asks me for more money than what I paid on the site?

You do not have to give the local more money that what you already paid. Tips are completely voluntary. If the local asks you for more money, simply say no and notify us to support@tourepublic.com providing the following:

  • Local’s name
  • Title of the experience
  • Booking date
  • Description of the issue

What is a Cancellation Policy?

Our Cancellation Policy is a set of guidelines to request and process cancellations of listed experiences in Tour Republic. Please, read our Cancellation Policy for more details.

Will I be charged if I cancel my booking request?

You may cancel an experience with a complete refund if you do so 14 calendar days before the booking date.

However, please notice that confirmed bookings may affect the local’s business since he/she already reserved a date for you, probably declining requests from other travelers.

That’s why we strongly encourage you to discuss other options with the local through our messaging system.

Please, notice that if you decide to cancel the confirmed experience within 14 calendar days from the booking date, you may not receive a refund. Please, read our Cancellation Policy for more details.

Can I change the booking date?

Yes, you can. Send us an email to support@tourepublic.com providing the following:

  • Title of the booked experience
  • Local’s name
  • Booking date
  • New requested booking date

We will cancel your previous order and make a new one for you. No extra charges will be made if you are interested in the same experience.

How do I cancel a booking request?

To cancel your booking request, please send us a message to support@tourepublic.com providing the title of the experience you want to cancel.

The local cancelled my experience, what happens now?

If a local cancels a confirmed experience, you be notified immediately by email. Since we understand how this unexpected cancellation may affect your travel plans, we may penalize the local in order to prevent this behavior again.

Tour Republic may attempt to please you offering similar experiences with other locals. However, you have no obligation to book the suggested activity. In any case, you are more than welcome to explore Tour Republic and find another experience that meets your expectations.

If you do not wish to book another experience, we will process a full refund within 5-7 business days from the cancellation date. Please, read our Cancellation Policy for more details.

How do I get a refund?

You may get a refund if you cancel your booked experience 14 calendars days before the booking date or if you suffer a Travel Issue. A Travel Issue means any of the following:

  • No-show: the local failed to arrive within 20 minutes of the scheduled start time for the experience.
  • The description of the experience is materially inaccurate regarding the real duration, itinerary, or physical location.
  • The experience depended on certain weather conditions that were not met and prevented the experience from taking place on the booking date.

If you suffered a Travel Issue, please reported it to support@tourepublic.com within 24 hours from the day the experience took place. In your report, please provide the following:

  • Title of the experience
  • Booking date
  • Description of the experienced issue

For more details, please read our Refund Policy.

Can I get in touch with the local?

You can get in touch with the local through our message system and send him as many messages as you need. We will function as a bridge between the traveler and the local to ensure the quality and safety of the communication and the transaction.

How will I recognize the local when we meet?

The profile picture of the local will help you recognize him/her. The local will be also able to recognize you if you include a profile picture in your profile.

Additionally, you may use our messaging system to communicate with the local and ask him/her for more details that will help you identify him-her.

What happens if the local doesn’t appear for the experience?

If the local doesn’t show up, you must notify Tour Republic as soon as you can. Your money will be fully refunded.

How do I report that something was wrong during the experience?

You are more than welcome to send us an email to support@tourepublic.com and we will help you solve the experienced issue. Please, provide the following:

  • Title of the experience
  • Booking date
  • Description of the experienced issue

Please, do it within 24 hours from the day the experience took place so you could be entitled to a refund, if applicable.

Will there be other people during the experience?

Due to the requirements for a particular experience, you may participate with other travelers. In no way should this affect the quality of the activity and even in some cases you may end up having more fun, like in dance classes. However, sometimes you might end up enjoying an experience all by yourself. It all depends on the experience requirements, the booking date and the number of booking requests for a particular date.

What are some helpful tips for traveling to Cuba?

If you are in search of helpful tips for traveling to Cuba, you are welcome to surf our blog, where you will find everything you need to know to plan a memorable trip to Cuba.

How do reviews work?

After you enjoyed the experience, we encourage you to write a review about it to help other travelers decide what to do on their Cuba vacations.

To leave a review, first log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, and click on Bookings. Then go to Reviews and select the experience you want to review.

What are the Tour Republic’s review guidelines?

Travelers may review the experience they have attended. Published reviews must be true, clear and useful for Tour Republic and the users. Travelers may not be obliged or coerced to give opinions in a specific sense. If this occurs, please report it by sending an e-mail to support@tourepublic.com providing the following:

  • Title of the experience
  • Booking date
  • Description of the experienced issue

Please, notice that reviews will not be removed or edited unless there are clear violations to our Terms and Conditions.

What do the stars mean?

Starts are the rating system Tour Republic uses to validate an experience, 5 stars being the maximum and 1, the minimum.

How do I become a local with Tour Republic?

To become a local and start receiving bookings requests through Tour Republic you must:

  • Register in Tour Republic by using your email address, or your Facebook or Google account.
  • Publish the experience(s) you offer by following the steps described in the List an Experience page.

For more details on you can create your account, publish your activities, and manage bookings, please keep reading the following questions or read our Terms and Conditions.

Who can be a local in Tour Republic?

If you are 18 years or older and legal resident in Cuba who offers a tourist experience, then Tour Republic is for you.

How much does it cost to upload an experience to Tour Republic?

We have great news for you: it is completely free! You just have to create an account and list an experience.

Are there any restrictions on what can be published?

Yes, a few, but nothing too hard to follow.

You must not post political, religious or social comments not related to the experience, or rude, vulgar, obscene, defamatory, calumnious, threatening, discriminatory, pornographic, or any other content that may encourage hate or physical or verbal violence.

Also, you must not encourage or support any activity considered illegal in Cuba.

For more details about what type of content you may publish in Tour Republic, please read our Terms and Conditions carefully.

How much should I charge for my experience?

You are free to set whatever price you think it’s fair and you can even change it whenever you want. For reference, you may benchmark the price that other Cuban entrepreneurs are putting to experiences similar to yours. However, the only rule you will surely want to follow is that the price you set must anticipate profits, after all costs are deducted.

When creating an experience, you may use the provided calculator to know exactly how much the traveler will pay and how much you will receive for a certain price.

Still with questions? We can help! Just shoot us a message to support@tourepublic.com and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

What is the minimum price I can set?

The minimum price you may set for an experience is 10 CUC.

What is the maximum price I can set?

There is no restriction on how much you can charge for your experience. However, in certain cases we may advise about a recommended price if we feel your actual price is too high.

Is it better to set a price per person or set a flat rate?

You may set a price per person or a flat rate (price per experience, not matter how many clients participates). There is no better type of price. It all depends on what you feel it’s fair for your particular experience.

If you have any question, please write us to support@tourepublic.com and let us help you.

Can I set prices depending on the season?

Yes, you can change your price whenever you want.

Is it necessary to have photos of the experience?

Yes, you must provide photos for your experience. They may be snapshots of moments during your experience or with real clients.

However, if you don’t have photos at the moment, we may provide photos related to your experience for free. Please, let us know by writing an email to support@tourepublic.com.

Please, remember that the photos you provide must comply with our copyright guidelines. That is, to not infringe copyright from third parties and recognize the intellectual and industrial property rights of Tour Republic over the provided images. For more details, please read the section User Content Policy in our Terms and Conditions.

Do they have to be professional photos?

No, they don’t need to be “professional” photos. However, we recommend you to use photos larger than 800 x 600 pixels.

How do I edit the photos of my experience?

To replace the photos of your experience, first, log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, and click on My Experiences. Go to Published, select the experience you want to edit and replace the photos.

How do I set my calendar and availability?

When creating an experience, you will be able to set the days and times you are available.

What is Instant Booking?

Instant Booking is a pre-scheduled date and time when you will be available for sure. It means that any booking request for such date will be automatically confirmed. Instant Booking is an optional feature that you may use or not, but, if you do, please, select the dates and times you are very sure of.

How do I find my experiences?

To see your experiences, first, log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, and click on My Experiences to find the Published option on the left menu. Once there, you may click on the button View to check how other users see your experience.

Alternatively, you may look for your category on the homepage and browse through the search results until finding your experience.

How do I edit my experience?

To edit your experiences, first, log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, and click on My Experiences to find the Published option on the left menu. Once there, you may click on the button Edit to apply any change to your experience.

How do I turn off or deactivate my experience?

To turn off, deactivate or simply delete your experience, please let us know by writing an email to support@tourepublic.com providing the title of the experience you want to deactivate.

How does the booking process work?

When a traveler request to book your experience, you will receive an automated email with the booking details, including the title of the requested experience, the booking date and time, number of guests, and how much would you receive.

You will be prompted to confirm or decline the booking request in less than 48 hours.

What do I do when I receive a booking request from a traveler?

You must confirm or decline the booking request in less than 48 hours.

Am I allowed to decline booking requests?

Of course you do! However, please remember that repeatedly declining booking requests may affect your rankings and reviews in Tour Republic.

What happens if I let a booking request expire?

A booking request expires in 48 hours. If you fail to respond to a request, it will be considered as if you decline the booking request. Please remember that repeatedly failing to respond or declining booking requests may affect your rankings and reviews in Tour Republic.

How can I view and send messages to travelers?

First, log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, click on Inbox. From there you can send direct messages to travelers as much as you need.

Why can’t I call or email a traveler before booking?

To ensure the safety and quality of the transaction, Tour Republic must function as a bridge between the local and the traveler. Even though we cannot facilitate direct phone calls and emails, you can message the traveler through our communication system as much as you need.

What happens if I receive an inappropriate message?

You must report it to Tour Republic immediately so we can deal with the issue in no time. Please, send us an email with a detailed explanation and, ideally, a copy of the inappropriate message to support@tourepublic.com.

  • Traveler’s name
  • Title of the experience
  • Booking date
  • Copy of the inappropriate message

Why can’t get in touch with the traveler?

You can ask any question you have about the experience through our messaging system. We work as a bridge between locals and travelers to facilitate a more effective communication.

How will I recognize the traveler when we meet?

The profile picture of the traveler will help you recognize him/her. The traveler will be also able to recognize you if you include a profile picture in your profile.

Additionally, you may use our messaging system to communicate with the traveler and ask him/her for more details that will help you identify him-her.

What happens if the traveler doesn’t appear for the experience?

If the traveler was absent the day when the experience should have taken place, please let us know immediately by writing an email to support@tourepublic.com, providing the following:

  • Title of the experience
  • Booking date
  • Traveler’s name and additional details you know about the traveler

How do I report that something was wrong during the experience?

If something wrong happened during the experience, please send us an email to support@tourepublic.com providing the following:

  • Title of the experience
  • Booking date
  • Name of affected travelers
  • Description of experienced issue

Please, do it within 24 hours from the day the experience took place so we can deal timely with the issue.

How do I cancel an experience?

Tour Republic takes cancellations of confirmed bookings as a serious issue since it can considerably affect a traveler’s vacation plan and cause harm to our service credibility.

You are authorized to cancel a confirmed experience if causes of force-majeure arise or if your minimum participation requisite is not reached. Please, send an e-mail to support@tourepublic.com and expecting confirmation from us.

Please, remember that unjustified cancellations may cause you some penalties at our discretion, including a cancellation fee, automated reviews, blocked calendar, or even account suspension. Please, read more about this in our Cancellation Policy statement in our Terms and Conditions.

What happens if a traveler cancels an experience?

A traveler may cancel an experience 14 calendar days before the booking date. In such case, the traveler will receive a full refund.

However, if the traveler request to cancel an experience within 14 calendar days from the booking date, there will be no refund and you will receive the full payment for your activity.

How does the Refund Policy work?

There are circumstances that may qualify a traveler for a full refund. Such circumstances are called Travel Issues and may be any of the following:

  • No-show: if you failed to arrive within 20 minutes of the scheduled start time for the booked experience.
  • The description of your experience is materially inaccurate regarding the real duration, itinerary, or physical location.
  • The experience depended on certain weather conditions that were not met and prevented the experience from taking place on the booking date.

The traveler will have up to 24 hours from the booking date to report any Travel Issue to Tour Republic. For more details, please read the Refund Policy section in our Terms and Conditions.

What will my payout be?

When creating an experience, you may use the provided calculator to know exactly how much the traveler will pay and how much you will receive for a certain price.

When do I get paid?

You will receive your payment within 24 to 48 hours from the booking date.

What are Tour Republic’s commissions?

Please, get in touch with our support team at support@tourepublic.com to get the updated information on our commissions.

What is a Booking Number?

A Booking Number is a numerical code that each traveler receives when booking an experience. It constitutes the only evidence that Tour Republic will accept as confirmation that the experience has taken place. Please, ask for the Booking Number to each traveler who participates in your experience when you personally meet him/her. You must not ask for the Booking Number before the booking date.

How do I submit the Booking Number?

Remember that you must submit the Booking Number after the experience has taken place.

To do this, first you need to log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, and click on My Experiences. Once there, go to Booked and select the experience you want to submit the Booking Number for. You will immediately see the field to submit the Booking Number.

Alternatively, you may send the Booking Number to support@tourepublic.com and provide the following information:

  • Title of the experience
  • Booking date
  • Name of the participant travelers
  • Booking Number

Where can I see my Transaction History?

To check the sales history of your experiences, first you need to log in using your credentials. Then, go to My Account, on the top right of any page, and click on My Experiences. Once there, go to Payment History where you can track your past sales.

Why should I use your payment system?

Our payment system is the most secure for you since it will help you get rid of no-shows and late cancellations that affect your time and income. We guarantee the full payment for your activity in case of no-shows or late cancellations.