Cuba Says Russian Tourists Won’t Suffer from the Blackouts

The number of Russian visitors has increased in recent years. / 14ymedio

By 14ymedio

HAVANA TIMES – The fact that last week’s news of the blackout was published in the world’s leading newspapers did not do the Cuban regime any favors, as it fears losing the few tourists that continue to arrive on the island. On Monday, the commercial director of the Cuban Ministry of Tourism, Gihana Galindo Enríquez, tried to dispel the bad opinions about Cuba as a vacation destination for Russians, a market that has shown growth in recent years. “The impact of this situation on the country’s tourism sector was minimal,” she assured the Tass agency.

Galindo does not deny the crisis, but treats it as a temporary inconvenience, despite the fact that the country has been suffering for several years from fuel shortages and breakdowns in thermoelectric plants, which have plunged Cubans into long days of blackouts. The official, however, presents it as a solved problem: “We were able to confront this crisis and take corrective measures.” This Tuesday, the Electric Union announced an energy deficit of 1,318 megawatts.

She also defended the actions of the island’s authorities, who did everything possible to ensure that travelers remained unaffected by the difficulties caused by the total blackout. “When this situation made it difficult to serve customers, they were transferred to other hotels where they were provided with complete recreational facilities,” she explained, which helped to ensure that no tourist itinerary was cancelled.

For the high season, which coincides with winter on the Island, Galindo said that the hotels have backup generators – the same ones that kept all the tourist establishments operating while Cuba was completely shut down for more than three days – which “guarantees the maintenance of the viability of tourist services.”

Galino also referred to the particular concerns of Russian tourists, such as the ability to pay in rubles through Mir cards. “We have not had any imbalance in transactions with the Russian market and with the markets of other countries,” she said.

As if the official’s words were not enough, the Russian agency also interviewed Konstantin Dudkin, head of the Varadero department of the Moscow-based travel company Pegas Touristik. The manager’s response did not disappoint the official line: “Based on some of the global problems that Cuba has experienced in the past, the Administration, the Government and the Ministry of Tourism have taken the necessary measures to provide everything required in a time of extreme uncertainty and to keep the tourism sector afloat.”

Dudkin added that the regime guaranteed hotel services by filling water tanks, refueling generators and transporting tourists to other facilities – all tasks that involve the use of fuel that the state had always told the population it did not possess.

The director of the tourist agency even defended the island’s government, speaking about the US embargo and the unwillingness of some countries to assist Cuba. “We must bear in mind that we are not on the continent, where borders are open and these problems can be quickly resolved,” she explained, adding: “It is clear how difficult it is for them to do certain things, unlike other countries. I think everything was done at the right level. In my opinion, they tried to resolve all the problems that arose. It worked exceptionally well. Our company’s operations were not affected by this situation,” she concluded.

“As Artur Muradyan, vice-president of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (Ator) for international tourism and general director of the Space Travel tour operator, told TASS earlier, the situation with the power outage in Cuba had virtually no impact on Russian tourists. Ator also reported that there were no mass cancellations of tours to Cuba due to a large-scale power outage there,” the news agency concluded.

In an interview with Tass a few days earlier, Galindo said that the Russian market was on the rise and that the number of travelers from that destination who had arrived on the Island in 2024 was 8% higher than in 2023. The official even estimated that “if there are enough planes that can fly such long distances, then in the last two months of the year” there could be more than 200,000 Russian travelers.

While it is true that Russia has positioned itself as the country that sends the third most tourists to the Island, the overall numbers do not match the Cuban regime’s expectations of reaching 3.2 million travelers this year. As of September 1, 1,608,078 foreigners had arrived, 58,920 fewer than the same period in 2023, and expectations could not be worse, especially for a regime that has invested everything in this sector. Cuba’s main source of tourists, Canada, fell in August, with a cumulative total of 665,871, 1.5% less than the same month of the previous year.

With destinations that are better equipped and cheaper in the region, such as the Dominican Republic, Cuba is becoming an increasingly unattractive option for travelers. François Laramée, a Quebec travel agent who was in Varadero during the blackout, gave an interview to the LCN network where he could not have been more blunt. “It was pathetic,” he said, and concluded: “Even in a five-star hotel, it was catastrophic.”

Translated by Translating Cuba.

Read more from Cuba here on Havana Times.

10 thoughts on “Cuba Says Russian Tourists Won’t Suffer from the Blackouts

  • Georgevrana writes: “Cuba is a victim of a suficating US embargo for a decades, a double standard, dirty US policy that is used all around this world, no wonder Cuba has problems”.

    Cuba certainly has its problems – mostly self inflicted. Have you been to Cuba lately? Have you walked down any Cuban city street and had the misfortune of having to see strewn all over street corners mounds of rat infested, putrid garbage? How is the “suficating US embargo” responsible for this travesty?

    I am certainly not an apologist for American foreign policy. However, to lay the blame for the total incomprehensible, incompetent mismanagement of the Cuban economy for decades and decades is rather naive.

    You are absolutely correct in denigrating “dirty US policy “. After all, look what happened in Vietnam. The US pulverized the country destroying critical infrastructure. Yet, unlike the incompetent totalitarian Cuban communist government, the ingenuity and intelligent Vietnamese communist government was able to rapidly rebound from economic and infrastructure devastation in a few short years.

    Today, Vietnam is an economic success despite its past treatment from US foreign policy. How about Cuba? Can you realistically blame the current Cuba problems on the embargo? The US does send food and medication to the island. If you believe that it is solely the embargo embroiling the island, then you obviously do not have an open mind.

    Georgevrana, read some history and put Cuba in an historical perspective vis – a – vis other countries’ historical devastations and you will be schooled at how immaterial a, so called, embargo really is.

  • Rusiophobia is well spread thought out western world and everybody with little of open mind must to see this never ending which hunt by the western media of spreading lies and hate..Cuba is a victim of a suficating US embargo for a decades, a double standard, dirty US policy that is used all around this world, no wonder Cuba has problems…

  • We have loved visiting Cuba several times over the past 10 years, but our trip in March 2024 was our last. Rude Russians have taken over and clearly take priority over Canadians. We had many unfortunate incidents from being overlooked at a bar for drinks (while clearly holding a tip out) until all Russians had been served to having excursions booked in advance be “lost” for Canadian tourists while Russian tourists flocked onto busses. It is sad, but we won’t be returning. Clearly the messaging to resort staff is to provide Russians with priority service who never show appreciation or tip the workers.

  • During my last recent trip to Cuba, there were noticeably more Russian tourists in La Habana. I was told that Varadero and the Cayos are overrun with Russians. Many restaurants in Havana have printed menus in Russian. I went to a reception for the release of a new cigar and the event was at least 50% Russian. Here’s my observation: the typical Russian who can afford a vacation on the other side of the world from Russia is probably very spoiled in Russia, let alone in a third world country like Cuba. Canadians and Americans can find week-long travel packages to Cuba for under $1000. It’s at least 3 times that price for a Russian tourist. Keep in mind that the Ruble is way down against the US dollar. I understand why people think Russians are rude. I saw it as being pretentious.

  • My friends and family will no longer travel to Cuba after reports of drunken rude Russians from some of our friends who travelled there recently. The Cuban government has made a huge mistake in promoting tourism from Russia. The drop in Canadians visiting the island will be far greater than the number Russians visiting. Decisions like this are what is putting the country in jeopardy.

  • I used to love Cuba, til the Russians started swarming there. They are a very rude people. This Canadian won’t be back.

  • Have been many places in Cuba and loved every place we stayed the people r what make Cuba great just hooe it gets back up and going again someday soon

  • Hello .Hola. I love cuba so much a beautiful country..electricity is the main issue. I think solar panels great idea for cuba. But the cost. Think China is the way to go much cheaper…to supply panels. I traveled many places in the world but cuba will always be my place. ❤ God bless everyone.

  • North Korean’s will be arriving shortly .. .. ..

  • Russian gov will try to supply oil and spare parts to keep Russian cars and tractors running if possible.
    The fact tourists both Russian and Canadian get fuel for generations and water ahead of schools and hospitals is very bad. After the big storms in the U S and Canada we don’t wait for the gov to send in helicopters or the military to get people out
    Many private fleets and nonprofits and farmers that still use horses that do construction on the side go in and work 7 days a week 12 to 14 hours per day as long other people can keep the supplies coming.. Cuba is broken and Russia needs replacement workers and troops for the war and is short 1 million men at this time .

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