2014 International Tourism Fair dedicated to Havana
• Havana, with 12,000 hotel rooms, boasts 23% of the
country’s total lodging capacity, and receives 50% of the
tourists who visit the island

Cuba’s International Tourism Fair, FITCuba 2014, is dedicated this year to the city of Havana and welcomes as the special guest country, France, which has much untapped potential as a source market. Also being promoted at the Fair are multi-destination tours, popular among Europeans.

May 6-10, representatives from tour operators, travel agencies and airlines, along with the media and specialized press, will gather at Havana’s San Carlos de La Cabaña Fortress for the 34th edition of FITCuba. The first three days are devoted to meetings for professionals, while the public is invited to learn about tourism and recreational options during the final two, according to Dalila González García, communications director for the Ministry of Tourism (Mintur). González also announced that, among many novelties, the Fair will include activities in other provinces this year, an important step forward in the development of FITCuba, she said.

The fair’s focus is on urban tourism, in particular, trips to the nation’s capital, reflecting current trends which have made Havana one of Cuba’s most popular destinations, second only to Varadero, the famous beach resort in Matanzas.

The city boasts 12,000 hotel rooms which account for 23% of the nation’s total of 60,500, and receives 50% of all international tourists. Havana is the country’s principal arrival point, with José Martí International Airport, the most important of Cuba’s 10 international airports, receiving more than a million tourists annually.

There are other Havana entry points, including the Hemingway International Marina, one of seven on the island, and the Cruise Ship Terminal located on the city’s bay, which will be exclusively devoted to tourist traffic, as other port activities are moved to Mariel.

Regino Cruz, Mintur commercial specialist, met with the press and reported that the current high season – November 1, 2013 through April 30, 2014 - has been a good one for the cruise industry, with a 20% increase in arrivals, as compared to the same period last year.

Mintur officials have indicated that progress continues on hotel renovation nationally, in an effort to provide greater comfort and higher quality services. Havana’s Capri Hotel, which re-opened its doors after a lengthy renovation, late last year, is an impressive example.

Also announced were continuing negotiations related to the establishment of joint companies to undertake construction of golf course facilities.

Havana will benefit from many of Mintur’s projects directed toward diversifying offerings and incorporating options which generate higher income.

The selection of France as the special guest of honor this year reflects Cuba’s commitment to develop such untapped markets, according to González.

Regino Cruz reported that France is one of the countries, along with Italy and Germany, from which an increased number of tourists arrived, during this year’s high season.

During a recent visit, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius met with President Raúl Castro and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, and said he hoped to expand bilateral relations between the two countries.

France is Cuba’s ninth most important trade partner, but Fabius commented, "We can, and should, do more."

According to the Mintur officials, tourists from this nation are particularly interested in multi-destination tours, and new options of this kind are being promoted at FITCuba 2014. Many are featured on the Fair’s website, given the growing demand in Europe for these types of activities.

The relatively short distance between various sites of natural, cultural and historic interest – given the island’s geographical characteristics - and the established transportation options available between important tourist destinations, allow visitors to combine a variety of activities during one visit.

The nation’s capital, originally named San Cristóbal de La Habana, is one of the seven original villas established by the Spanish in Cuba. Investigators have found three early settlements, but on November 16, 1519, the city was definitively located on the port of Carenas – now Havana Bay – in the area where El Templete and the Plaza de Armas were later built. December 20, 1592, Phillip II recognized the city and, in 1593, it became the colony’s capital.

Havana’s central historic district and fortifications, among the most ancient in Latin America, were designated a World Heritage Site in 1982, by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Visitors plying the narrow, cobblestone streets can see approximately 140 buildings from the 16th and 17th centuries, plus an additional 200 from the 18th and more than 460 from the 19th, while learning about ancient customs and diverse traditions from hospitable Cubans.

Havana is, however, much more than the central historic district. It has its Christ, its Cathedral and Capitol; its Plaza de la Revolución, complete with a José Martí Monument and memorial museum, its Malecón and Fifth Avenue – created in the 20th century and one of the country’s most beautiful, stretching from Vedado through Miramar, two Havana neighborhoods with many business and tourist attractions of their own.

The cosmopolitan city has important museums and theaters, hotels and restaurants to satisfy all tastes, with a great variety of cultural and recreational centers, commercial facilities and convention halls, as well as community projects which promote the most authentic Cuban folkloric and artistic expressions.