EASING EMBARGO BOOSTED CUBA'S TOURISM REVENUE

EASING EMBARGO BOOSTED CUBA'S TOURISM REVENUE
Tourism revenue was up 15 percent in the first half of 2016, compared to
the same period in 2015.
BY REUTERS ON 11/12/16 AT 6:11 PM

Revenues from tourism in Cuba rose 15 percent in the first half of 2016
compared with the same period last year, official data showed on Friday,
with the number of visitors from the United States soaring around 80
percent.

Tourism income rose to $1.2 billion in the January to June period, the
National Statistics Office data showed, helping sustain an economy
struggling with lower global commodity prices and a crisis in key ally
Venezuela.

The sector is expected to boom further over coming years given easing
U.S. restrictions on travel, the return of U.S. cruise ships to the
Caribbean island and regular commercial flights between the two countries.

While Canadians still make up the largest group of tourists to Cuba by
far, Americans came in third place after Cubans living abroad in the
first half of this year, the data showed.

Until very recently, there were more visitors from Germany, Italy,
France and Britain than from the United States.

But the tourism sector in a country famed for its beaches, classic cars
and fading glamour has changed fast since U.S. and President Barack
Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro decided to put an end to half a
century of Cold War hostility in December 2014.

While the trade embargo still prohibits Americans from visiting Cuba as
tourists, the Obama administration has approved 12 categories of
exceptions to the ban ranging from cultural travel to business, within
which many visitors fit.

The total number of visitors to Cuba was up 11.8 percent, the data showed.

The boom in the tourism sector contrasts starkly with the gloomy picture
in the broader economy. Cuba's trade surplus fell more than 40 percent
last year, according to data released on Thursday.

Service exports, despite an increase in tourism, were down $1.3 billion.
While tourism is becoming increasingly important, receipts from
healthcare and other professional workers sent overseas still make up
the bulk of Cuban services.

The Cuban hotel occupancy rate remained below 50 percent, the data on
Friday showed. Economists say this could be because the state is failing
to renovate hotels and instead building new ones, while bed and
breakfast inns are also flourishing.

Source: Easing Embargo Boosted Cuba's Tourism Revenue -
http://europe.newsweek.com/embargo-cuba-tourism-revenue-520444