Swiss Airline Edelweiss Cancels Flights to Cuba
Rerouting for the Dominican Republic
HAVANA TIMES – Gravely wounded in recent years, Cuba’s tourism industry is facing a new problem: airlines rerouting flights that they previously flew to the Island, but now prefer to land at its largest Caribbean competitor, the Dominican Republic.
That happened this week. David Collado, Minister of Tourism of the Dominican Republic, told the press during the International Tourism Fair (Fitur) under way in Spain, that Swiss airline Edelweiss is redirecting several of its Cuban routes.
“We signed agreements with several different operators and airlines today, and tomorrow we will continue signing with Iberia, Air Europa, and Edelweiss, bringing five additional flights to the Dominican Republic, flights that had gone to Cuba and are being transferred to the Dominican Republic,” said the minister, who affirmed that his country has made a successful effort to secure new air routes and commercial partners.
“Today, Air Transat and Air Canada informed us that they will also increase the number of flights from Canada as well, Collado added.”
The rerouting of flights came a few days after Edelweiss announced the suspension of its route from Zurich to Havana, which will make its last flight on February 27, the company explained to 14ymedio.
The Swiss media outlet Twenty Minutes, which initially reported the suspension of the routes, stated that “the decision is based, on the one hand, on decrease in demand and, on the other, on the current conditions of the José Martí International Airport in Havana. An on-site review conducted by Edelweiss has revealed difficulties in guaranteeing stable and reliable long-haul operations in the long term.”
A month earlier, the German company Condor also announced the suspension of its flights to the Island for the summer season for the first time since 1990 (other than during the pandemic). The company served three destinations: Havana, Holguín, and Varadero.
Since Cuba was added to the list of states that sponsor terrorism, European citizens visiting the Island can no longer benefit from the ESTA visa waiver program for entering the United States, which, in the opinion of the Cuban Government, had damaged its destination in the European market.
The company pledged to refund the price of tickets to those who had purchased tickets after the deadline.
Travelers from Spain, previously an important market for Cuba, showed the most worrying drop: Up to November in 2024, Spain contributed 26.8% fewer travelers than in the first eleven months of 2023. It is not surprising, therefore, that the Cuban Minister of Tourism, Juan Carlos García Granda, arrived at Fitur stressing that his Government is working in the face of “difficult, complicated scenarios” in the tourism sector.
The promise of the Ministry of Transport to repair airports has also not been carried out. Last July, Minister of Transport Eduardo Rodríguez Dávila said that planned improvements at José Martí Airport in Havana (a new air conditioning system and facilities expansion) for terminal 3, dedicated to commercial flights, had never happened. “In reality, that airport has been at its limit for a long time. We have tried to make investments, and the Havana airport is the one that receives more than 50% of passenger arrivals,” he lamented then.
Translated by Tomas A. for Translating Cuba.
I noticed that during my last trip to Cuba last year, the Jose Marti airport seemed dingier and dirtier. After entering the airport facility from the jet way, you are funneled through a hallway and down an escalator into a large open room. This room was so dark that I looked up to check the number of florescent lights not working. They were not just turned off, many were broken with some fixtures half-hung from ceiling. The floors were unswept. The lines leaving this room for baggage claim were formed for Cubans returning and separately for foreign visitors. Normally, the lines for Cubans is much shorter than the lines for foreigners. But I noticed that on this last trip, BOTH lines were short. Cuban airport personnel, in my opinion, have never been very friendly. Many countries throughout the world suffer from the need to come across as if they are doing the foreign visitors a favor by letting you into the country. Cuban airport staff seemed especially sour this last time. From touchdown on the tarmac up through my taxi ride to my casa particular, not one person said “Gracias”. I understand that life is tough in Cuba. But I couldn’t help but feel like they were taking it out on me.