The Cuban government will rent some of the island’s hotes to international chains, which until now had only managed them, starting with the Spanish company Iberostar, according to EFE sources familiar with these negotiations.
This represents a paradigm shift in a sector that until now had been tightly controlled by the Cuban state through the Ministry of Tourism and various companies within the GAESA business consortium, controlled by the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR).
The first hotel on the island to implement this new formula is the Iberostar Origin Laguna Azul, located in Varadero. The agreement has already been signed and will begin to be implemented on January 1, 2026.
Prime Minister Manuel Marrero announced at this year’s FITCuba trade fair that among the measures the executive branch was considering to boost the sector, which is experiencing a slump, was the leasing of state-owned tourism facilities.
These agreements, according to EFE, represent a qualitative leap forward compared to the first concrete announcement in this regard: the two letters of intent signed with Chinese counterparts “for the negotiation of a lease for the Copacabana Hotel” in Havana, as reported in late April by the official newspaper Granma.
The move, according to sources consulted, has a dual objective. On the one hand, it seeks to increase the income for the country, which is mired in a serious crisis and urgently needs foreign currency to import basic needs such as food and fuel.
On the other hand, it seeks to provide the large hotel chains operating on the island with greater autonomy and flexibility to improve service — one of the main drawbacks of the sector today — and, consequently, the image of these facilities, which has suffered in recent years due to the country’s crisis.
According to EFE, the new system aims to begin with pilot projects in facilities belonging to various large international hotel chains.
Cuban authorities are negotiating the terms of these agreements separately with each chain, and it appears there are no common scales for setting the rent or fixed fees. Neither party has agreed to disclose the agreed rental amounts.
More tourists, more foreign currency
With this decision, the Cuban government seeks to increase its foreign currency income in two ways.
Directly, through the revenue it receives from renting the facilities to hotel chains. Indirectly, this measure also seeks to boost a key sector in the country’s economy.
It is also one of Cuba’s three main sources of foreign currency — along with professional services and remittances — which Cuba needs because it imports 80% of what it consumes. This is intended to revitalize visitor numbers, which are currently at their lowest levels of the century, not including 2020 and 2021, due to COVID-19 restrictions.
So far this year, international tourist numbers have fallen compared to 2024, when they were already the lowest in 17 years. Industry sources expect to end the year with around 1.8 million visitors, compared to 2.2 million in 2024 and 4.7 million, the island’s all-time high, reached in 2018.
Hotels also perceive the measure as beneficial, according to people involved in the negotiations with the Cuban government, who spoke to EFE.
Firstly, because it allows them to have “completely autonomous” management for the first time. Until now, although they managed hotels owned by GAESA, they had to follow multiple official guidelines and obtain state approval for many issues, from investments to menus, including salaries.
Regarding this last point, the new management model will allow hotel chains to set the salaries they pay their employees for the first time, instead of having to pay the very low state-set wages in Cuban pesos.
After these pilot tests, the plan contemplates expanding the management change process to the country’s hotels, although no timeframe has been set.
Despite the recovery experienced in Cancún (Mexico) and Punta Cana (Dominican Republic), tourism in Cuba has not recovered since the pandemic, both due to endogenous causes (economic and energy crises, monetary reform) and exogenous causes (U.S. sanctions).
