Cuba's blackouts and shortages deepen: what travellers face in Havana

Cuba is gripped by a worsening economic and energy crisis, with frequent power outages that last longer than a day and critical shortages of food, fuel and medicines across the island. Conditions were described from Havana on 5 November 2026, and anyone planning a trip should expect large parts of the capital to be without electricity after dark.

Key facts

• Power blackouts are frequent and often last more than a day.
• Shortages of food, fuel and medicines have been reported across the island.
• Huge parts of Havana are unlit at night; even the capitol building was completely dark.
• Residents say money loses value every day and the state no longer supplies basic food or medicine.
• Analysts and Cuban officials expect the United States is very unlikely to ease restrictions on Cuba's fuel supply.

What are conditions like in Havana?

Large sections of the city go pitch-black at night and streets that were once known for busy nightlife are empty, according to reporting from the Cuban capital. People walk around with flashlights, and apartment blocks are left hot without cooling or reliable power.

Basic supplies have become hard to find. Reporting from Havana describes residents searching the streets for basic medicine, while money loses value every day and food or medicine the government used to provide is no longer reaching them.

What is driving the shortages?

The broadcast attributes the fuel squeeze to U.S. restrictions on Cuba's fuel supply, which it says are already having a crippling impact. The Trump administration has stepped up pressure on Cuba over the past year and has increasingly talked about regime change, adding to uncertainty on the island.

Analysts and Cuban officials said it is very unlikely that the United States will ease those fuel restrictions. One unnamed resident said that whoever is in charge in Washington, nothing will change for ordinary Cubans.

What else is changing inside Cuba?

The Cuban government has loosened its grip on the economy more than at any point in its 70 years in power. Alongside the darkness and shortages, luxury SUVs are on the roads, fine-dining restaurants run generators to keep air conditioning going, and small shops sell imported cheese.

Reporting from the capital also records anger over the growing gap between those who have money and those who do not on the communist island.

What this means for travellers

Anyone travelling to Cuba should plan for extended power cuts, fuel shortages and limited availability of food and medicines, and should expect large areas to be dark at night. Comforts such as air conditioning and reliable lighting may depend on individual venues having their own generators.

No changes to Cuban entry rules, visas or airport operations were announced in the report.

What happens next

With U.S. midterm elections now over, attention has turned to whether the administration will focus more on foreign policy. Reporting from Havana notes that any unilateral action by President Trump would be harder now that Republicans have lost the House and the Senate, while big economic changes continue inside Cuba.