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The Ministry of Tourism of Cuba published, through the state agency Havanatur SA, an infographic listing the operational hotels in Havana and Varadero for the summer of 2026, in an attempt to project a sense of normalcy in tourism following the mass exodus of international chains triggered by the sanctions imposed by the United States government against the military conglomerate GAESA.
The official list includes 18 properties in Havana —among them the Tryp Habana Libre, the Nacional de Cuba, the Meliá Habana, the Meliá Cohiba, the Packard, the Inglaterra, the Iberostar Parque Central, and the Chateau Miramar— as well as 22 in Varadero, including the Barceló Solymar, the Meliá Varadero, the Meliá Las Américas, the Iberostar Selection Varadero, the Sol Palmeras, and the Brisas del Caribe.
The infographic itself implicitly acknowledges that the offer is incomplete: a footnote warns that "other complementary properties are being gradually added."
The announcement comes weeks after several of the world's major hotel chains ceased their operations on the island.
Meliá Hotels International ceased operations in 15 hotels linked to GAESA on June 3, while Iberostar stopped managing 12 establishments as of the 1st of that month.
To these departures were added Blue Diamond Resorts —the Canadian company that operated 62 hotels and more than 12,900 rooms— and the Indonesian group Archipelago International, which managed the Grand Aston and five other hotels under the Aston brand.
The trigger was Executive Order 14404 signed by Donald Trump on May 1, 2026, which expanded secondary sanctions against companies with ties to GAESA, with a deadline of June 5 set by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
In the comments on the Facebook post, Havanatur SA addressed the concerns raised by the media coverage.
In response to the question of whether Iberostar had left Cuba, the agency replied: "No, sir. They have only ceased operations at the facilities associated with the Cuban entity sanctioned by the United States government."
In another comment, the state agency admitted that the confusion was partly a result of how it was reported: "The information has raised many doubts as the headlines have announced the movements in totality, which has not been the case."
The regime bets on domestic tourism as a lifeline in the face of an unprecedented collapse.
In 2025, Cuba received only 1.8 million international tourists, the lowest since 2002 and less than half of the historic peak of 4.7 million reached in 2018.
In the first quarter of 2026, the decline was 55.8% compared to the same period of the previous year, with only 328,608 visitors.
Hotel occupancy has not exceeded 10-13% so far this year, a level at which no hotel is making a profit.
The Grand Aston La Habana hotel temporarily closed the week of June 23 due to a lack of fuel, following the departure of Archipelago International.
As part of the strategy to attract Cubans from the island, the regime reopened Brisas del Caribe in Varadero on June 26, offering free vacations for children aged zero to 12 years, and Transtur launched scenic routes in Havana for 10 dollars and in Varadero for five dollars, with free entry for two children per adult, valid until August 31.
The underlying problem is that prices in foreign currency remain unattainable for most Cubans, whose average salary does not exceed 15 or 20 dollars per month, making "national tourism" an option accessible only to a minority.
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