EspañolThe first American-owned hotel in Cuba opens Tuesday, June 28.
Hotel Four Points, owned by Sheraton and which was once the “Quinta Avenida” hotel in Miramar is one of two hotels making up the Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide chain of hotels that agreed to a multi-million-dollar agreement with Cuba last March.
This is the first hotel owned and operated in Cuba by a United States business since 1959, thanks in part to the work President Barack Obama’s adminstration has done with Raúl Castro in opening some diplomatic relations.
Many believe the opening of this hotel is the starting point of major investment from companies in the United States geared toward the tourism industry. This company will operate two hotels and has signed a letter of intent to operate a third.
The number of travelers expected to visit Cuba has risen over 13 percent in the first four months of 2016 with a total of a 1.5 million tourists having come to the island. It’s expected to continue growing if the United States lifts the travel ban to the island.
Following his rise to power, Fidel Castro nationalized all large businesses, including those in the tourism industry.
Sources: CiberCuba; Martí Noticias