How it works:
- Opening: a local offers to help you buy coffee beans at local prices (can happen at shops or at coffee plantations).
- Set-up: what you get is probably a mixture of burnt and old coffee beans. Further, you may be pressured to buy other local products such as rum at inflated prices.
Places to beware:
- Havana: Old Havana
- Vinales: Valle de Vinales
What to do:
- Engage reputable tour operators and buy only at reputable, legitimate shops.
- GetYourGuide (leading platform of day tours globally) has a couple such coffee plantation tours.