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By eTN and travelatatinamerica.com
Since Fidel Castro announced that he has given up control over Cuba, many are asking the question: What will become of the island’s burgeoning tourism industry?
The changes that have arisen in the leadership of Cuba will not negatively influence the development of the island’s touristic sector, stated Cuban Deputy Tourism Minister Alexis Trujillo. “The political situation in the country is stable, therefore the tourism industry is also stable,” he stressed, referring to the resignation of power by Fidel Castro, who was succeeded by his brother, Raul.
More flights to Cuba and investments, too. The Italian airline, Livingston, which will begin operations to El Salvador, will have a commercial stopover in Cuba and not in Cancun as was scheduled, announced Taca, the company with which Livingston signed a commercial agreement to be its main vendor in the Central American region.
In a Russian press conference in which the Ambassador of the Greater Antilles took part, Deputy Minister Trujillo predicted big possibilities for negotiations that were already underway, stimulated by his third visit in three years to Moscow. In the presence of dozens of journalists gathered at the headquarters of the news agency ITAR-TASS, the Deputy Minister said that he considered the hotel, extrahotel services and nautical activities sectors to have the greatest prospect.
Meanwhile, Elena Rabassa, head of the Cuban Tourism Office in Frankfurt, told reporters that 2008 is the year of Culture and Tourism on the island, which is why, she added, efforts are being made to diversify the Cuban tourist product and to integrate it with culture.
“We have 36 protected areas, including seven natural parks and eight sites that have been declared as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO,” she told Cuban News Agency.
Cuba is among the 186 countries and regions showcasing at this ITB Berlin. Visitors to the annual gathering can find Cuba’s stand in Hall 3.1.
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