Following Meliá, the Spanish chain Iberostar is also pulling out of Cuba
The withdrawal of the two Spanish hotel chains comes on top of the scaling back of operations by other foreign companies in Cuba, such as the Canadian airline Blue Diamond, which recently announced the permanent closure of its operations
Following the announcement by the Spanish hotel chain Meliá that it would be closing all its operations in Cuba with effect from Friday, the Iberostar chain has also confirmed today that it “no longer manages or markets any hotels in Cuba” in the context of the serious crisis currently affecting the Caribbean island.
The news was reported by the specialist website Hosteltur, which does not, however, provide any details as to when Iberostar’s withdrawal took effect.
On 1 June, the Iberian hotel chain had severed ties with Gaviota – a chain controlled by the state-owned conglomerate Gaesa, which had recently been sanctioned by the United States – thereby ceasing to manage the twelve hotels associated with that entity.
The company had, however, announced that it would maintain its presence in Cuba through six establishments whose state-owned counterparts belong to other tourism groups not linked to the military conglomerate, including Cubanacán and Gran Caribe. Meliá had announced the closure of its operations in Cuba, highlighting the “serious difficulties” encountered in carrying out its activities on the island under mounting pressure from the United States and the fact that it had become “impossible, both in practice and in law, to maintain even a minimum level of operational stability”.
The withdrawal of the two Spanish hotel chains comes on top of the scaling back of operations by other foreign companies in Cuba, such as the Canadian airline Blue Diamond, which recently announced the permanent closure of its operations.
