Cuba Tourism

Tourism is a relatively new activity in Cuba. Like in the rest of the world, its risen from the 50s. At that time, the development of tourism in the island was closely linked to the United States who had the principal market for this product.   Since 1959, the development of the economy was directed to other programs in the country, so at the time it was essentially national tourism, which conditioned a residential structure.
In the 80s it started to reopen to international tourism, but in 1990 there was a new approach to the development of this sector, creating the first joint venture and there was a rapid growth in visitor arrivals and revenue. In 1996, it was visited by over a million visitors.  To market their tourism product, most of the West had popular hospitality and quality people, exceptional natural attractions, a historic indigenous prolific artistic and cultural life, a unique health development industry, political stability and security for tourists.

The Ministry of Tourism (MINTUR) is the lead state agency.  It develops policies and monitors its implementation in the entities that manage the properties directly in the sector. Cuba also has a new faculty at the University of Havana, dedicated to studies on tourism called Department of Tourism.   To take forward the development of tourism in Cuba, it has a structured system of hotel (Grand Caribbean, Habaguanex, Islazul, Horizontes, Grupo Gaviota, Cubanacan) as well as (Rumbos, Cubatur, Transtur and Turarte).