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The people of Cuba are experiencing widespread blackouts, but government officials are trying to convince major Canadian tour operators that "everything remains the same" on the island and that tourism will not be affected.
Lessner Gómez, the Marketing Director of the Ministry of Tourism (Mintur), assured during meetings with agencies in Toronto and Montreal that “Cuba is operating normally” and that hotels have the necessary supplies to maintain their services.
The official stated that the country receives oil from partners such as Mexico, and that there are sufficient reserves to cover the winter season, despite the announcement by U.S. President Donald Trump to cut off Venezuelan crude supplies to the island.
Gómez claims that the arrival of Canadian visitors has increased by 17% so far this January compared to 2025. The regime expects to reach one million tourists from that country in 2026, up from 720,000 the previous year.
Canada continues to be the largest source of tourists to Cuba, a market that the government is trying to maintain despite the growing dissatisfaction among travelers due to issues with infrastructure and basic services, even in all-inclusive hotels.
While the Mintur defends its image abroad, the Cuban electrical system is experiencing one of its worst crises.
This week, officials from the Ministry of Energy and Mines admitted on state television that the shortage of diesel for distributed generation is the main cause of the power outages affecting the country.
“We have no fuel for distributed generation,” acknowledged Lázaro Guerra Hernández, General Director of Electricity.
The Electric Union reported on Sunday outages exceeding 1,900 megawatts during peak hours, leaving the capital virtually in the dark for more than six hours.
The service was restored in the early hours, but the company warned that outages could recur "due to emergencies" if the availability of the National Electric System does not improve.
Most Cuban hotels have backup generators, but this does not exempt them from experiencing service issues. The lack of fuel affects the supply to resorts throughout the island.
It also creates severe transportation problems and forces tourists to stay locked in their hotels, because once the sun sets, it is dangerous to walk the dark streets of Cuban cities.
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