Cuba is hot Hot HOT! With the appearance of cruise ships this past year, travel to Cuba has been easier than ever. However, travel to Cuba is a fluid thing with requirements changing year to year. As of November 9th, the rules have changed a bit again. This time, travelers must travel with a tour group for a people-to-people program. Independent travel to Cuba for people-to-people programs are no longer allowed.
Below are the specific details according to ASTA:
- Prohibition on Individual People-to-People Travel: Going forward, Americans traveling under the educational “people-to-people” license will have to do so as part of a licensed tour group, as was the case before last year. In the case of an individual people-to-people trip where the traveler has “already completed at least one travel-related transaction (such as purchasing a flight or reserving accommodation)” prior to the President’s June 16 announcement, such travel will be authorized.
- No Transactions with Companies Controlled by Cuban Military: Americans will now be prohibited from engaging in direct financial transactions with entities and sub-entities identified by the State Department on the Cuba Restricted List (published November 9th). The list, which includes a number of hotels in Havana and elsewhere on the island, will be maintained by the State Department and “periodically updated as necessary.” However, any travel-related transaction in place prior to the State Department’s listing of any entity or sub-entity will continue to be authorized (with the exception of individual people-to-people trips, where the cutoff is June 16, 2017, as indicated above).
The number of hotels on the list is staggering, and it remains to be seen how this list will affect people traveling on land tours.
Click here to see the US Department of Treasury resource for travel to Cuba.
Click here to see the US Department of Treasury’s FAQ list.
