Can I buy a sim card in Cuba and also use Skype?

Question: If I bring a tri-band phone to Cuba and buy a sim card in Cuba, can I call outside Cuba, receive calls from outside Cuba and is it possible to use skype?

Answer: In a telephone consultation with Cubacel, the business arm of ETECSA which offers mobile telephone services in the country, they said that for your tri-band phone to be activated for use in Cuba, it must be GSM working in the 900 MHz band width. It must also be decodified (that is, free of any commercial company). If it meets these two criteria, it will be able to make and receive international calls while you are in Cuba.

SIM cards (pre-paid with a certain amount of time on it) are available from all Cubacel offices and can be purchased for CUC 10, 20 or 40 each. You will find Cubacel offices in both Terminals #2 and #3 at the José Martí International Airport in Havana. There is also a Cubacel office in Miramar (Calle 28 #510, e/ 5 y 7, Tel 05?880?2222 or 05?264?2266 for client attention). Cubacel’s website is www.cubacel.cu

There are also various ETECSA “telepuntos” located elsewhere, including in some hotels, where you can get SIM cards.

Cubacel says that Skype services are not available in Cuba.