Cuban Tourism Minister Praises Corporate Spain
The Cuban delegation attending the International Tourism Fair (FITUR 2018) in Madrid, headed by the island nation’s Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz, hosted Thursday a dinner to honor Spain’s top hoteliers, tour operators and travel agencies operating in Cuba.
After having words of appreciation for the presidents of the main hotel groups that were in attendance, such as Meliá, Iberostar and Globalia, Mr. Marrero thanked the Excelencias Group for the award given to Cuba as one of the world’s safest destinations.
The day before, Mr. Jose Carlos de Santiago, president of the Excelencias Group, had handed out the Excelencias Award to Minister Marrero that praises Cuba as one of the safest travel destinations on the planet.
The high-ranking Cuban official also had words of appraisal to the Spanish Royal Academy of Gastronomy, that on that same day designated Havana as the Cocktail Capital of Iberian-America. The certification was delivered by Mr. Rafael Anson, president of the abovementioned institution, with Excelencias Group President Jose Carlos de Santiago also in attendance.
During the traditional dinner the Cuban delegation always offers within the framework of FITUR, Minister Manuel Marrero told the audience about the recovery of Cuba’s travel sector following the havoc wreaked by hurricane Irma in September. He explained that in spite of the hurricane and U.S. President Donald Trump’s onslaught against Cuba, the island nation’s tourism posted great numbers on the board.
According to Mr. Marrero, Spain continued to be one of Cuba’s top outbound markets with a grand total of 170,000 visitors in 2017, up 16.5 percent from the previous year.
He also mentioned a number of projects that have been assigned to several Spanish hoteliers in Cuba, including a new build in Trinidad (central Cuba) with Meliá Hotels, as well as a similar development with Iberostar on the same premises.
Spain, which is the recipient of over 70 percent of foreign-investment contracts on the Caribbean island nation, has pledged to continue its safe bet on the Cuban market.
