Cuba did not reach 3 million foreign tourists in 2023

Despite an overall increase in traveler arrivals in 2023, with almost 3.2 million visitors (including domestic),Cuba failed to surpass the mark of 3 million foreign tourists, according to the National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI).

This situation contrasts with the aspirations of the Cuban regime, whichestimated the influx of international tourists at more than 3 million for last year. It also contrasts with the tourism performance of its neighbors in the region.

Despite the collapse suffered in the tourism sector, in January 2023 the Minister of Tourism,Juan Carlos García Granda, declared in Madrid that the regime ofThe island expected to receive about 3.5 million visitors throughout the year.

This Tuesday, the ONEI estimated the number of international visitors at 2.4 million, leaving García Granda's forecasts below by more than 30%. In contrast to this decline, the Dominican Republic and Mexico, especially destinations like Cancun, experienced a boom in the influx of foreign tourists.

In 2023, the Dominican Republic received more than 6 million international tourists, consolidating itself as a leader in the tourism industry in the Caribbean. Meanwhile, Cancun in Mexico attracted more than 4 million visitors that year alone.

The disparity between these tourist destinations reveals the complex situation that Cuba faces. Specialists such as the Cuban professor and researcherJose Luis Perelló warn that, despite the rebound in tourist activity, the Caribbean island is immersed in one of the deepest crises of the last two decades, as recognized by the official agency itselfLatin Press.

Factors such as competition with nearby destinations in the Caribbean area, internal problems in the Cuban economy and the restrictions imposed by the United States further complicate the situation.

While Cuban authorities seek to diversify tourism offers, with focuses on history, culture, nature and adventure, the gap with respect to its neighbors in the region highlights the failure of the Cuban regime's commitment to international tourism.

Hotel chains, especially the Spanish oneMelia –which has increased its presence in Cuba-,They do not escape the crisis of supplies and food in the country, something that travelers have also suffered along with the general shortage in the country, the dirt and the oppressive atmosphere that is breathed on the Island.

At the end of the year, a Russian tourist and blogger recounted her 16-day stay at the five-star hotel in Varadero, Iberostar Laguna Azul, an experience that she described as “difficult,” and that she decided to accompany with some advice for those who are willing. to face a similar adventure.

“Without a tip you are nothing,” was the first of a long list of recommendations that the author of the blogTravel with a camera slipped his readers. The blogger assured that in Cuba "the cult of tips has risen to a kind of savage level," and that is why she invited people to leave "dollars or gifts" everywhere as the only way to receive a minimally decent service.

So that they change the towels, clean your room better, serve you better rum in your cocktail, so that a waitress does not ignore your request if you ask for a glass of water, for everything the same solution: tips or gifts.

“No, I don't mind thanking someone for a job well done. I always leave tips in cafes, restaurants, even gas stations and taxi drivers. ButIn Cuba the cult of tips has risen to a kind of savage level. Thus, tourists bring chocolates, cosmetics, socks and other things for the staff in the hope of receiving something remotely resembling normal service. But even with a mountain of 'gratitude', this doesn't always work," he noted.

At the end of May, agents of the Russian hotel industry advised tourists from their country traveling to Cubastaying in hotels with non-Cuban chefs, amid serious food shortages on the island.

According to the TourDom platform, food is a frequent problem in Cuba and its quality is the main reason for travelers' complaints.

"The opinion is that the most advantageous option is to look for a hotel where there are non-Cubans in the kitchen. So, Turkish chefs were specially brought to the PGS Varadero Hotel 4+, knowing about the problem. You can choose it only for the food, but otherwise an average hotel," the head of a Russian tourism agency warned the site.

In July of last year, a Mexican tourist recounted his experience in a hotel in Varadero, where the food was so bad that he and his partner had to go to dinner at a private restaurant. "Third day in Varadero, Cuba, and now we are finally going to have dinner at a decent place,because the hotel food is horrible", he acknowledged on his social networks.