Five-star hotel underlines Cuba's high-end tourism aims

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Cuba's second luxury five-star hotel was inaugurated by President Miguel Diaz-Canel on Saturday, as Havana looks to establish a foothold in the high-end tourism sector and bolster economic growth, despite the ongoing US blockade.

Located in Havana's Old Town with a stunning view of the city's bay, the Grand Packard Hotel is Cuba's second to be ranked as "five-star plus," and is operated by Spanish company Iberostar, which has been operating on the island for 25 years.

Cuban Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero said the hotel is part of a new strategy to attract more high-spending visitors.

"Iberostar has been present in the country since 1993 and currently operates 27 hotels with 7,881 rooms, adding the Grand Packard as its best exponent in Cuba," he said.

Marrero emphasized that the arrival of international visitors to the island is undergoing an important recovery, after a sharp 6.5 percent drop in the first half of the year.

"We have been able to recover despite the intensification of the US blockade," he added.

Despite the sharp contraction in tourist numbers, Cuban authorities still aim to finish the year with a record 4.8 million visitors, according to the tourism ministry.

According to Xinhua, 46,000 Chinese tourists visit Cuba every year, a number that pales in comparison to visitors from the US, Canada and Europe.

Marrero told Xinhua in September that Havana was looking to work more closely with Beijing on boosting tourism links between the two countries, including the establishment of a non-stop flight between the two capitals.

Restrictions placed on American tourists by US President Donald Trump in 2017 have put pressure on Cuba's fledgling tourism sector.

While 619,000 Americans visited the island last year as part of official tour groups, the International Monetary Fund estimates that without Washington's restrictions, Cuba could welcome between 3 and 5 million US tourists per year.

The tourism sector is the second biggest source of foreign currency income for Cuba after professional services abroad, and is considered one of the main driving forces of the country's economic development.

Cuba's first five-star hotel, the "Gran Hotel Manzana," part of the Swiss group Kempinski Hotels, opened in May 2017 in Havana.

(With inputs from Xinhua)