Cuba is pinning its hopes on attracting more visitors from Communist ally China as part of a last-ditch bid to revive a sputtering tourism industry devastated by renewed US sanctions under the Trump administration and a crisis-wracked economy.
Visitors from abroad, a critical source of foreign currency on the island, plunged by nearly a third in the first quarter of 2025, according to recent data from Cuba’s statistics agency, ONEI, an ominous sign that has left top officials on the archipelago scrambling for alternatives.
Cuba had forecast 2.6 million visitors in 2025, an 18 per cent increase over the previous year, but seems unlikely to hit that target as the peak northern winter fades into a sultry Caribbean summer.
“It’s no…
