How Cuba is Preparing to Reopen its Borders on Nov. 15

The decision to open international tourism in Cuba responds to the accelerated vaccination process that is currently underway and which, by November 15, is expected to have reached 90% of the population, date designated for the reopening of other sites on the Island.

The above was explained by the Cuban Minister of Tourism, Juan Carlos García Granda, when he intervened in the television program of the Round Table this Thursday, in which he offered details on how the country will resume tourism activity.

García Granda added that the November 15 promotion is communicated in advance because the sector needs preparation to start its operations, in the work of the tour operators, agencies, advertisements and the logistics that it involves.
“Tourism is a strategic sector and this is how it is defined in the National Plan for Economic and Social Development until 2030, due to its impact on the country’s exports and its dynamic role towards the rest of the sectors of the economy,” he said.

Regarding the cessation of operations, the owner noted that he affected the active workforce: “Of the 111,033 workers, 55,832 are working in person, and about 2,950 remotely or by teleworking”

Likewise, he recognized the role of those who were inserted in other modalities to help the country in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, mainly in isolation centers and in hospitals for the care of patients and health personnel.
María del Pilar Macías Rutes, Director of Operations and Quality of the Ministry of Tourism, made reference to the change in health protocols, and assured that they are reinforced with the purpose of better management and control of the pandemic.

To this end, the most hygienic and safe Tourism program was developed, in which the Ministry of Public Health participated with recommendations from the world organizations of Tourism and Health, the operators established in the country and the tour operators of the main countries. issuers.

Under these premises, 2,259 entities have been certified, of them 563 in the non-state sector, which entails a process of training, review and control, aimed mainly at individual responsibility for self-care, to avoid infecting fellow workers. work and family.

She acknowledged that more than 45,000 workers have been vaccinated to date, including those in immigration, customs and transportation. In addition, a reinforcement schedule was established to immunize others who are not directly linked to the tourist.

The protocols prioritize the care of the doctor and the nurse within the facilities, but a hygiene and epidemiology technician is added to dedicate himself to monitoring and strict compliance with these.

For tourists with symptoms, hotel-hospitals and immediate transfer to that place are planned. Each traveler must bring with them the vaccination certificates or the realization of a negative PCR in the 72 hours prior to arrival in Cuba. He specified that the tourist will have, throughout his stay in the country, a guaranteed epidemiological surveillance.

At another time, the delegate of Tourism in the province of Matanzas, Ivis Fernández Peña, explained that more than 79 hotel and non-hotel facilities have provided or provide their spaces for the care of suspects and confirmed with the disease.

“I have witnessed the commitment, discipline and dedication with which the workers in the sector have performed to help the Cuban people in the difficult situation of the pandemic,” she valued.

She also announced that the Ministry does not give up on improving its services in times of pandemic. So “it has developed new high-standard rooms for reopening.”
One of the actions we carried out, in this period of relative stoppage of operations in the sector, explained the official, was to improve connectivity and technology as a destination, in response to customer demands and demands.

The country assumes with responsibility the tourist activity that will resume, soon, in all possible scenarios and with the aspiration of increasing economic figures, always attending to the health of the population and under the challenge of reaching levels that preceded the scourge stage. of the pandemic.
Measures to receive tourists in the month of November

• The flexibility of hygiene-sanitary protocols upon the arrival of travelers to the country is supported by scientific and sanitary studies.
• The sanitary and epidemiological protocols established so far for the facilities are not abandoned.
• Medical services will continue for 24 hours in the hotels and technologies are being sought to detect any symptoms, act promptly and keep people who require it in isolation.
• The opening to more tourism responds to its involvement in the national economy and thinking about its take-off.
• The tourist destinations of Havana, Cayo Coco and Varadero entered 163 743 international visitors on the 1st. from January to August 31, and this means 824,000 less than in the same period of 2020. In these poles, tourists developed their activities within that territory.
• By November, greater mobility of visitors and the possibility of city excursions will be allowed.
• For the high season (November-April), the country renovated tourist facilities and designed more innovative products, taking into account the culture, history and heritage of Cuba.
• The airports that receive tourists for the poles of Varadero and Cayo Coco allow each passenger to come with luggage without quantity and weight restrictions. The limitation of only one baggage per person is without effect.
• For now, the 14 days of isolation are maintained for all incoming visitors.
• Hygienic-sanitary protocols will focus on monitoring symptomatic patients and taking temperature, with randomized diagnostic tests.
• The opening of the domestic tourist market will also begin gradually, in accordance with the epidemiological indicators of each territory.

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