Stunning Natural

With over 2.4 million foreign visitors to Cuba to be seen again in the year 2009, a record increase in visitors over last year. At about 3.3% to the increase, according to official data are available. Also, the measure adopted by U.S. President Barack Obama in April, lifting (almost) all restrictions on visits home and us-American exiles may have contributed to the positive balance. Single but important drawback: shorter visiting hours and lower prices for tourist services meant that revenues declined in the Cuban tourism sector in spite of the increase in visitors. Thus, the socialist Caribbean island was not spared from the international tourism crisis.

In order to almost 80,000 the number of foreign visitors over the previous year’s (at that time rose 2.34 million), as Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz announced last week in the party newspaper Granma. This was made possible, according to Marrero, including through 2,000 new hotel rooms in major tourist areas like Havana and Varadero.

The foreign exchange revenue, which quantified the Cuban tourism sector in 2009 flowed, Marrero in the “Granma” not. Back in November, however, he read all know that the proceeds of his ministry in the current year are lower by about 11.7% than in 2008. The reason he was then called discounts that were imposed by the international recession. 2008 overseas visitors to the socialist Caribbean island bestowed on revenue of 2.7 billion U.S. dollars. Compared to 2007, this was an increase of 13.5%.

Not quantify exactly the impact of liberalization adopted by Obama trip, there are the US-American Cuba partners since the middle of April allowed to visit their old home as often too. North American charter organizers report that book flights to Cuba since then have grown by approximately 30%. The Cuban authorities, however, many arriving Cuban exiles did not register as “foreign visitors”. Therefore, they are in the above admissions are only partially covered.