y all means, take some. Cubans have nothing yet they will offer you a gift, be it an orange from their garden or a cup of coffee. We had more stuff in our little guests room than an entire village. The only word of caution is what to take. They need clothes, shoes, books, medicine (like Tylenol), fishing gear (nothing fancy), dishes, all the basic necessities of life. It's also nice to have some luxuries.An nice scotch will be a big hit. Kids need toys but be careful. Some friends took crayons and pencils which seemed like great gifts, but they're not much use to kids who have no paper.

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Take them some notebooks. Basic learn to speak english books are really appreciated. cubans love magazines. Everybody will want your baseball hats, and t-shirts with anything in english on them. Also Toys for kids, Samples of perfume or after shave fragrances, Soap, shampoo, toothpaste, Chewing gum, sweets, toothbrushes, hair accessories, tampons (very much appreciated by the ladies), Multivitamins & vitamins with added Calcium since milk is in short supply and the state only supplies milk to children under age 7. Also Aspirins & general drugs are welcomed.

At the end of your trip just leave the clothes and shoes that you don't like any more, you can be sure that they will be using this for years. In cuba is very difficult to find any kind of clothes in the regular market in cuban Pesos

If you want to send a gift to a cuban relative or friend you can visit www.gifts2cuba.com this website is intended to do this service. if you want to send money yo cuba to a friend or a relative you can use www.cash2cuba.com and if you want to send letters, postcards or telegrams there is also a website for this with fast delivery system all across cuba www.mail2cuba.com we strongly recommend this 3 websites as the best for this endings in cuba.

this is just a hint abut what you can bring as a gift but essentially you can bring anything, Do not give money to cubans when Cubans do something nice for you. Giving money only encourages begging. The exception to the 'no money' rule would be for friends or if it's legitimate business such as tipping a cab driver or a restaurant or bar server.

So bring small gifts with you before you fly to Cuba as they basically have nothing by way of material possessions; anything that you can leave behind they will appreciate .All that we find 'normal' in our lives they appreciate very much!

PLEASE do not pass out 'gifts' on the streets. The kids love it, but all you will get is a bunch of little persistent beggars, constantly following you and the tourists with hands out.

If you're willing to take a bit more, check out www.kidsea.com, a private nonprofit organization which helps facilitate donations of basic learning supplies to needy schools.