Cuba’s Travel Industry Aims High as Avalanche of U.S. Sunbathers Nears

Allowing US tourists to visit Cuba has been a major focus of the Obama administration since the December 17, 2014, announcement he wanted to normalize relations with the island nation.

Embassies have now opened in both countries, while tour operators and cruise lines gear up to capitalize on the expected rush of American tourists. Pro-travel lobbyists have been working for years behind-the-scenes to encourage the Obama administration to take on the challenge of restoring relations with Cuba.

The imprimatur of the Obama administration has allowed lobbyists to band together with NGOs and other corporate interests to advance the cause of opening travel to Cuba.

“The challenge has been that no one thought this issue was going anywhere for two decades,” said James Williams, president of Engage Cuba. “By going so big, President Obama made it so every office in Congress had to start thinking about Cuba again.”

Engage Cuba is a non-profit public policy group with goals shared by a variety of organizations across several business sectors.

According to Williams, Airbnb has been a major beneficiary of the legal changes instituted so far; it doesn’t suffer any of the red tape hotel brands will face in entering the Cuban accommodations market.

“Airbnb has been one of the companies uniquely able to take advantage of the legislative changes,” said Williams. “One of the founders of Airbnb told me it got more [publicity] for its launch in Cuba than it did for the original launch of the company.”

The next step is pushing new legislation through the next session of Congress to lift travel and trade bans.

Part of Engage Cuba’s current legislative goal is to change the restrictions that limit tour operators to running large-group people-to-people tours. It is pushing for the availability of individual licenses.

Allowing U.S. airlines to operate more freely in Cuba is also a priority.

In Havana, the focus is on facilitating the involvement of American businesses in the Cuban economy. Creating such an atmosphere will help push the Congressional action in the U.S.