By Anthony Boadle Wed Mar 7, 4:39 PM ET
HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba is not ready for the throngs of American
tourists who would be expected to visit the island if a U.S. ban is ever
lifted, but it has the time to build new hotels, a senior Cuban official
said on Wednesday.
"We have time to build the hotel capacity for the day that happens,"
Cuba's deputy minister of Tourism Oscar Gonzalez said in an interview.
"It will take the United States some time to dismantle that infernal
apparatus that has barred its citizens from traveling to Cuba," he said,
referring to proposals in the U.S. Congress to relax sanctions against Cuba.
Some U.S. lawmakers are seeking to ease restrictions on travel and trade
with Cuba, but even if Congress approves, their efforts are likely to
face a veto by
President George W. Bush who has tightened sanctions in an effort to
undermine
Fidel Castro's government.
Cuba estimates 1 million Americans would visit in the first year after
Washington ends a travel ban put in place more than four decades ago to
isolate Castro's communist government.
Americans are expected to flood to Cuba to enjoy its pristine beaches,
sip daiquiris at Ernest Hemingway's favorite bars and take a step back
in time riding in vintage cars in a city that was once a Mafia playground.
By some estimates, there could be 3 million American tourists visiting
Cuba within five years of an opening up of U.S. travel.
Cuba would have to more than double its current capacity of 42,000 hotel
rooms, Gonzalez said. The island has the potential for more than 250.000
rooms, he said.
DROP IN VISITORS
U.S. tourists would provide a needed shot in the arm for Cuba's tourism
industry, which saw a 3.6 percent decline to 2.1 million arrivals last year.
It was the first drop since 2002 when the worldwide travel industry
reeled from the fear of flying caused by the September 11, attacks by
hijacked planes in the United States.
European tour operators say uncertainty over Cuba's future since Castro
underwent emergency stomach surgery and handed over power to his brother
in July has not affected their bookings.
But they said the 2005 revaluation of the local currency made Cuba an
expensive vacation choice and business was lost to cheaper resorts in
Cancun and the Dominican Republic.
Operators cited complaints about bad service and poor quality of the
food at Cuban hotels as a factor in the decline of visitors from France,
Germany, Italy and Spain last year.
Britain became Cuba's largest source of tourists after Canada in 2005
when Virgin Atlantic started flying to Havana twice a week.
Some 602,000 Canadians and 211,000 Britons flew to Cuba to enjoy its
beach resorts last year, Gonzalez said.
The high cost of fuel has slowed European vacation travel and Cuba is
reviewing its prices in the face of competition.
"We are revising the quality/price ratio. The main effort we have to
make is to improve the quality of Cuba's tourism services," he said.
Gonzalez said Cuba was open to new partnerships with foreign hotel
chains such as Sol Melia that provide customers, prestige and management.
Cuba's goal is to expand its tourism trade by 8 percent this year to 2.4
million arrivals, he said.
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