International tourism in Cuba is falling, putting the financially struggling communist island on track for its worst performance since the pandemic, UNN reports with reference to Bloomberg.
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According to the latest data from Cuba's National Statistics Office, 1.4 million foreign tourists visited the island in the first nine months of the year, a 20% decrease compared to the same period in 2024.
Although tourist traffic typically increases in the last quarter, it is unlikely that the island will be able to reach last year's figure of 2.2 million tourists, which was the worst performance in two decades, excluding the pandemic crisis of 2020-2022.
Cuba's tourism industry, once a vital engine of the economy, has been hit by power outages, shortages of food and essential goods, global instability, and US economic sanctions.
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According to a study by Paolo Spadoni of Augusta University in Georgia, in 2018, when the island reached its peak, 4.7 million foreign tourists visited the island, and tourism revenue peaked at $3.3 billion.
In addition to being a major source of hard currency, the industry is a large employer in an economy where the service sector accounts for almost three-quarters of gross domestic product. Earlier this year, government officials said GDP contracted by 1.1% in 2024, the second consecutive annual decline.
Canadians continue to make up the bulk of international travelers, accounting for over 40% of all visitors, followed by Cubans living abroad, Russians, and US citizens. This year, all these groups have seen a decrease of at least one-fifth, with the number of Russian visits falling by more than a third.
One of the few nationalities whose citizens saw an increase in trips to Cuba compared to last year was Argentina. This country has recently seen a boom in purchases and trips abroad due to a strengthening currency.
The lack of tourists exacerbates Cuba's worst economic crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union. While Washington and others blame the authoritarian regime, the government in Havana points to the decades-long US trade embargo.