One of the big questions following President Barack Obama’s decision to significantly expand U.S. tourism to Cuba will be how much it will affect other Caribbean tourism destinations such as the Dominican Republic, Jamaica or Cancun. Independent experts say Cancun will be among the most hurt.
According to a 2011 International Monetary Fund study called “The Vacation Is Over: Implications for the Caribbean of Opening U.S.–Cuba Tourism, ” by former senior IMF economist Rafael Romeu, “the opening of Cuba to U.S. tourism would represent a seismic shift in the Caribbean’s tourism industry.”
The study said that a blanket lifting of the U.S. embargo on travel to the island — it has not happened yet, and is not likely to happen in the short run — would result in 3.5 million to 5 million U.S. tourists to Cuba a year.
As for the rest of the Caribbean, there would be winners and losers. Overall, the net effect would be an increase of up to 4 percent in total tourism to Caribbean destinations, because Cuba’s hotels would not have enough rooms to absorb the massive influx of Americans, and tourists from Europe, Canada and Latin America would most likely seek other destinations, the study said.
To continue reading this article click The Miami Herald
Etiquetas: Andres Oppenheimer, Barack Obama, Caribbean, Cuba
Share On Facebook
Tweet It
