President Reverses Many Of Obama’s Policies On Visiting The Island Nation
Saying he was “completely canceling” the “terrible and misguided deal” that opened up Americans traveling to Cuba, President Trump announced he would tighten travel restrictions for U.S. citizens to that country.
“Effective immediately, I am canceling the last administration’s completely one-sided deal with Cuba,” he said in reference to President Obama’s landmark deal that opened up trade and travel between Cuba and the U.S.
Trump did this in the Little Havana part of Miami, interestingly enough, which is full of Cuban expats who still hold ill feelings toward former dictator Fidel Castro.
American travel to Cuba will be tightened back to pre-Obama days for the most part as a result of Trump’s policy reversal. Americans will not be allowed to spend any money on businesses controlled by the military, which is a big part of the Cuban economy – including several new hotel projects – and must stick to authorized tour providers who work with Cuban state-run tourism companies.
However, airlines will continue to be able to fly to Havana, and cruise ships are still allowed into the country.
Needless to say, the news was not well received in Havana, as many small businesses and tour operators (which in Havana often means one individual hired for a day to show people the sites) are struggling to make a living.
Infrastructure is lacking, there’s barely any Internet connection for travelers and there is a wide gap between government-owned hotels and restaurants (some hotels are charging $500 a night) and the poverty of the average Cuban.
Still, tourism was picking up after Obama’s loosening of restrictions of Americans traveling to Cuba. People have been opening up their homes to Airbnb and other short-term rental opportunities and there was hope that some of the conditions that made it like going to a third-world country were improving with increased tourism dollars.
Cuba received a record 4 million tourists last year, and of those more than 600,000 were from the U.S., second only to Canada.
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