With travel to Cuba beginning to open up for Americans, there's optimism that travelers will soon be able to vacation on the Caribbean island without having to jump through loopholes. If and when that day arrives, here are five hotels and resorts we've got our sights set on.

Travel agents are—for the most part—excited by the latest development in a process that promises to open up Cuba to mainstream tourism. In what is a step-by-step process, U.S. officials this week signed a U.S.-Cuba air travel agreement that will pave the way for commercial flights between the two countries.

The media and travelers have been buzzing about this deal since it was first announced two months ago. The mere fact that U.S. commercial planes will soon be landing in Cuba after a five-decade absence has captured people’s imaginations.

Tauck’s one-week program, entitled “Cuba: Connecting with People,” was a hit with Tauck customers. But some wanted a more in-depth exploration of the island. For those people, Tauck introduced its 12-night/13-day “Cuba: A Cultural Odyssey.” But it didn’t happen right away.

 The world's tourism map is being redrawn at lightning speed as holidaymakers switch preferences prompted by terror attacks, epidemics, and migrant crises, though overall, world tourism has never been in better shape.

Richard Sealy, Barbados’ minister of tourism and international transport, said recently 2015 was a “turnaround year” for the destination. Overnight, land-based visitor arrivals totaled 591,892, the most ever recorded in the destination.