Meliá promotes campaign in India to attract tourists to Cuba

Meliá Hotels International and the Cuban Embassy in India, promote an advertising campaign for the island as an attractive tourist destination.

Over the weekend they held an event in Delhi that brought together more than 40 travel agency representatives, airlines and businessmen, both national and international, as well as the media.

Tonia Sehan, India Sales Director Meliá Hotels International, presented the more than 30 properties that the chain manages in Cuba, consolidating its presence as one of the main foreign hotel companies in the Caribbean nation.

This focus on the Indian market is part of a broader strategy to Cuba to attract international tourism. The country was awarded as the “Most Promising New Destination” at the OTM Travel Fair 2024 in India.

During the session, on April 19 in Delhi, the chargé d'affaires, Abel Aballe Despaigne, highlighted the exotic qualities of the Caribbean country as a destination through the new promotional campaign “Cuba Única”.

The meeting seeks to strengthen alliances between Indian and Cuban companies, promoting the commercialization of tourism products and investments in this vital sector for the regime's economy.

Preparations for the next International Tourism Fair FITCUBA 2024 were also detailed, which will be held from May 1 to 5 and represents the most significant event in the sector in the country.

The Cuban government has launched initiatives to form alliances with airlines and tour operators, as well as advertising agencies, to promote the island as a tourist destination.

According to the National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI), Cuba received 809,238 international visitors in the first quarter of 2024. Canada was the main issuing market.

This focus on emerging markets such as India and Russia is essential to reach the goal of 3.2 million tourists this year.

However, the Cuban government develops its strategy of opening to new markets, in a context where the most stable or traditional tourist-emitting countries, such as Spain, show a considerable decline.