In Havana, when the late afternoon light filters through the feathery fronds of palm trees, it casts long shadows across facades that once thrummed with visitors from every continent. Across Cuba’s beaches, plazas and colonial streets, there was a time when tourism was spoken of as the “economic locomotive” — a phrase that conjured images of steady, forward motion, of revenues rolling in and propelling the national economy. Today that metaphor feels heavy with irony, as the sector sputters and slows, its wheels no longer turning with the same momentum.
For decades, tourists arriving by sea and air brought vital foreign currency to the island, sustaining hotels, tour operators, artisans and countless small businesses. After the devastation of the COVID‑19 pandemic, there had been hope that visitor numbers would rebound, reconnecting Cuba with the global travel circuits it once dominated. But the reality of recent years has been a steady slide rather than a resurgence. Official figures show international arrivals have shrunk sharply, with a substantial decline continuing into 2025 and into the current high season, leaving once‑bustling resorts and historic neighborhoods quieter than they’ve been in generations.
Behind the ebb in arrivals lies a tangle of pressures that extend beyond tourism itself. Cuba’s energy system — long fragile — has faltered under fuel shortages and an intensifying economic blockade, leading to prolonged blackouts that ripple through daily life and business operations alike. In recent weeks, aviation fuel shortages have forced major carriers to cancel or alter flights, reducing connectivity just as demand was already soft. One prominent airline has already suspended its services to the island, stranding travelers and chipping away at the flow of visitors upon which hotels and attractions depend.
These disruptions are not isolated shocks but parts of wider trends. Power outages, fuel rationing and shortages of essential goods feed into travelers’ perceptions of reliability and comfort — two qualities that guide modern holiday decisions. Even where flights are still available, ongoing energy instability means hotels and restaurants must rely on costly generators to keep lights on and water flowing, driving operating costs higher and tempering the allure of Cuba as a destination.
The drop in tourism also reflects broader structural challenges that have shaped Cuba’s economy for years. Although tourism once served as a pillar of foreign exchange earnings, investment patterns that prioritized hotel construction over infrastructure and service modernization have left the industry less resilient than many of its Caribbean neighbors. At the same time, competing destinations with growing numbers of arrivals offer easier access, reliable services and stronger marketing narratives, drawing travelers who might once have chosen Cuba.
Yet, amid empty lobbies and half‑lit streets, there are still people whose routines intertwine with the rhythms of visitors — guides who remember long queues for classic car tours, restaurant owners who once greeted international guests with warm welcomes, and musicians whose notes once drifted through lively plazas. For them, the decline is not just a statistic but a lived experience of economic strain and uncertainty.
As dusk settles and the neon glow of signs flickers to life against cooler evening air, Cuba’s tourism story stands at a crossroads. The island’s leaders speak of contingency plans to sustain foreign currency inflows and adjust to reduced energy consumption, while some analysts urge a broader rethink that aligns the nation’s historical charms with the logistical realities of the present. Whether the “locomotive” of tourism can be refitted for a new terrain — or whether its wheels will continue to slow — remains a question of both policy and circumstance.
In hard numbers, the trend is clear: foreign arrivals and hotel occupancy rates are well below previous highs, and energy challenges have compounded the pressures on a sector once central to Cuba’s economic narrative. The quiet of empty beaches and vacant resort corridors may speak most poignantly of the distance between past ambitions and today’s unfolding reality.
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Sources Associated Press Reuters CiberCuba National Office of Statistics and Information (Cuba) TravelMole