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The general cost of living reflects conditions in the Continental U.S. There are no private commercial stores available.
Naval Base Guantanamo Bay, Cuba uses the American dollar therefore there is no currency exchange requirements or availability. The base does not have a Welcome Center or USO.
The information below is subject to change, please contact the appropriate entity for updated information.
All non-active duty personnel must have a current passport to get on NSGB. You must obtain passports (for the entire family), before arriving. If your passport is within a year of the expiration date, it is highly recommended that you renew it prior to PCSing to NSGB, as there are limited local resources to facilitate that process. Visitors will need an "Area Clearance" before they can be granted entry to NSGB. This must be completed, signed, and approved at NSGB before you can board the plane.
Car repair and maintenance is available, but parts are very limited. Also, repair facilities are limited and lack the proper equipment for models 1999 and newer. Only unleaded 87-octane gas and diesel fuel is sold here.
Navy Federal Credit Union has an office conveniently located in the NEX atrium. This NFCU is a non-cash facility. However, members may obtain cash using bank checks at the NEX Customer Service. Community bank is also located in the NEX atrium and is a cash banking facility. There are 2 ATM's located in the NEX atrium and 1 ATM located inside the Marine Hill Mini Mart.
Mail takes 1-4 weeks to be transported between the installation and the Continental U.S. Mailing fragile items is risky.
All Permanent Change of Station (PCS) transportation for military, DoD employees, contractors and dependents is via military aircraft from Jacksonville, FL.
Naval Station Guantanamo Bay is the forward, ready, and irreplaceable U.S. sea power platform in the Caribbean. We host and enable all branches of the U.S. military, plus several interagency and international partner organizations. We also provide an exceptional quality of life for our residents: Benefits for Naval Station Guantanamo Bay servicemembers, civilian employees, and their families include no-cost housing and utilities, plus access to most amenities and conveniences you would find on other military installations, including a Commissary, Navy Exchange, furniture store, gas station, hospital, dry cleaners, bowling alley, library, and sports complex. We have a combined school for pre-K through 12th grade, as well as a Child Development Center, Youth and Teen Center.
If accepting an accompanied tour, pets (with some restrictions) may accompany employees, and employees may ship most household goods and a personal vehicle to NSGB at no costs to themselves.
Other benefits include:
Living and working at NSGB is not, however, for everyone. There is no access to the rest of Cuba, and transiting on and off base via air only may be difficult at certain times, and getting a seat on a particular flight is not always guaranteed. The weather is hot or warm all year long, with little change in seasons. While there is an on-base hospital, those with medical conditions requiring frequent visits or treatment may not find their particular services available. Mail and package delivery also takes longer than at Continental United States locations. Security considerations can impact photography and other hobbies. And, owing to the location and challenges of delivery, grocery, dining, and shopping activities are fewer than those found in larger and less isolated places.
Life at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay offers adventure, challenge, and opportunity unequaled in any other locale.
Mission: As the premier southern-most deep-water U.S. Naval Base in the Western Hemisphere, Naval Station Guantanamo Bay strives to provide state-of-the-art self-sustaining infrastructure, while supporting unified, inter-agency joint operations, and training. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay provides a high quality of life for all personnel onboard the Installation and preserves the Installation’s sensitive environmental, historic, and cultural resources.
Vision: Naval Station Guantanamo Bay ensures the warfighter’s ability to operate forward and attain the highest levels of readiness.
Located in the Oriente Province on the southeast corner of Cuba, the base is about 400 air miles from Miami, Fla. The installation is the oldest overseas U.S. Naval base and is the only base located in a country with which the U.S. does not maintain diplomatic relations. Guantanamo Bay’s strategic location and topographic properties have made it a valued possession of maritime powers since the 15th century. Christopher Columbus landed at the Bay on his second voyage to the Americas, and it was later contested by the empires of England, France, and Spain.
In 1898, the Bay was taken by U.S. forces and their Cuban allies for use as a forward-operating base in their effort to wrest Spanish control of the island. In 1903 the United States leased 45 square miles of land and water at Guantanamo Bay, from the newly-independent Cuban government, to be used for fleet sustainment by the growing US Navy.
A 1934 treaty reaffirming the lease granted Cuba and her trading partners free access through the Bay, modified the lease payment from $2,000 in gold coins per year to the 1934 equivalent value of $4,085 U.S. dollars, and added a requirement that termination of the lease requires the consent of both the U.S. and Cuban governments, or the U.S. abandonment of the base property.
Base relations with Cuba remained stable and did not significantly change until the Cuban Revolution in the late 1950s, with United States and Cuban relations steadily declining as Revolutionary leader Fidel Castro aligned with the Soviet Union. The United States severed diplomatic ties with Cuba in 1961, and in 1964 Castro cut off water and supply avenues to the base: since then, Naval Station Guantanamo Bay has been self-sufficient, with its own power and water sources.
During its long history the base’s activities have at times included fleet training, ship repair, refueling and resupply, migrant operations, regional humanitarian relief and disaster assistance, search and rescue support, and detention operations. Today it remains the forward, ready, and irreplaceable U.S. sea power platform in the Caribbean, giving decision makers unique options across the range of military and interagency operations.
Naval Station Guantanamo Bay serves about 6,000 Joint Services personnel, Department of Defense civilians, family members, contract personnel, local and foreign national employees.
6,100.
We serve approximately 6,100 Joint Services personnel, Department of Defense civilians, family members, contract personnel, local and foreign national employees.
Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB) is in the southeast of Cuba and has an excellent climate, a relatively short rainy season, and beaches with swimming, scuba diving, snorkeling, fishing, paddle boarding, kayaking, and boating opportunities.
The Leeward side houses all flight operations and the Windward side houses the larger portion of the base operations including the housing units, limited temporary lodging, PreK-12th grade DODEA school, Child & Youth Centers, the NEX/Commissary (NEXMART) complex, and Fleet and Family Support Center. It also houses the major share of the recreation facilities, contractor sites, the Naval Hospital, and most other services.
This is an overseas location and there are no driving directions for arriving personnel and their families.
All transportation for military, DoD employees, dependents, contractors and victors is via military aircraft from Jacksonville, FL.
Bus and car rentals are available in Guantanamo Bay. The bus route provides transportation to the downtown area, medical facilities, housing and the ferry landing. The Ferry provides transportation between the Windward and Leeward sides of the installation. Ask sponsor for a copy of updated Welcome Aboard Guide or check the Naval Station base roller for current bus and ferry schedules.