Archive for the ‘Travel’ Category
Key West to Cuba Flights Approved
Approved US travelers will soon have another option to visit places in Cuba. According to Reuters:
Peter Horton, director of airports for Monroe County where Key West is located, told Reuters the October 5 authorization email he received from U.S. Customs and Border Protection did spell out some restrictions for Cuba flights however.
“It does not open up flights for the average American and it limits arriving passengers to 10 per flight. But it’s the first step and it’s an important one,” Horton said.
Cuba to Tampa Flights Begin
Tampa to Cuba flights began this week as the first flight between Florida and Cuba began, According to TampaBay.com:
The 75-minute flight carried 89 customers filling most of the Boeing 737’s 100 seats. Each paid $445 round trip, plus $2 a pound for luggage. The trip culminated a yearslong effort by airport and political leaders to win federal approval for nonstop flights to Cuba.
Florida Senator Marco Rubio wants to Block US – Cuba Flights
Marco Rubio with the help of Bob Menendez, D-NJ, is working hard to keep you from the freedom of travel. He even used the Republican code-word “Terrorism”. According the Miami Herald:
“There is no reason for the United States to help enrich state sponsors of terrorism,”
I guess they just don’t get it. Maybe they care less about the Cuban people than their powerful allies. Maybe they are part of the gang who wants to control Cuba’s future on their terms.
Obama Eases Restrictions on Travel to Cuba, Airports Can Offer Direct Flights
The Obama administration has moved to ease travel restrictions to Cuba in a late Friday announcement. According to Politico:
Allowing religious organizations and certain educational institutions to travel to the country, increasing the amount that non-relatives can send to Cuba, and opening all U.S. airports to licensed chartered flights from the communist nation.
The White House announced the new measures late Friday night, likely anticipating the mixed reaction among some Democrats and Republicans to any move seen as inching toward rapprochement with the communist regime. They had been in the works for months, but political concerns – such as November’s midterm elections – held up the announcement.
Airports Can Offer Direct Flights
One key policy change is that airports will now be allowed to offer flights to Cuba with some restrictions. According to the Tampa Bay Business Journal:
Airports seeking to offer direct air travel to Cuba will have to have the right infrastructure and will have to have a charter company lined up to provide the flights as part of President Obama’s new Cuban policy.
Specific regulations will be laid out in two to three weeks, the White House official said.
Airports will apply to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, part of the Department of Homeland Security. On the application, airports will have to show they have adequate customs and immigration infrastructure – in other words, they are truly an international airport capable of enforcing rules that apply to Cuba travel, the official said.
Website Features Information on Cruising Cuban Waters
While at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show last weekend, I wandered into a booth for Club Nautica. The site is designed for private boaters who are interested in cruising Cuban waters and provides information about marinas, regulations and entry.
There is a good chance the marine industry would flourish with an end of travel restrictions between the US and Cuba. The Republicans are always talking about too much regulation. Now that the Republicans have taken control of Congress and Florida, why not end the travel restrictions against Cuba and get the economy moving.
US – Cuba Talk About BP Oil Spill
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster which threatens Florida beaches is prompting the US and Cuba into “Working Level” talks. According to the Washington Post:
U.S and Cuban officials are holding “working level” talks on how to respond to the massive Deepwater Horizon oil spill that is believed to be dumping some 5,000 barrels of crude a day into the Gulf of Mexico, two State Department officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
The talks add to signs of concern that strong currents could carry the slick far from the site of the spill, possibly threatening the Florida Keys and the pristine white beaches along Cuba’s northern coast.
Cuba is a mere 90 miles from the Florida Keys and if the oil is picked up by the Gulf Stream, the oil affecting Florida beaches and Cuba’s shoreline will become a environmental and tourism nightmare for both countries.
High Hopes for Passage of “Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act”
Signs are looking positive for two important pieces of legislation, in the Senate, S.428 and the House H.R.874; both titled, the “Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act”.
Business Week has three recent articles which point to progress, according to this article:
The U.S. House of Representatives may pass a bill next month that would cut restrictions on agricultural exports to Cuba and lift a ban on travel to the island, the measure’s sponsor said.
Congressman Collin Peterson, chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, said he needs backing from one more lawmaker to assure the panel will pass the legislation. He expects to secure that pledge after Congress’s Easter recess, and for the measure to get approval by the full House.
And in the Senate, the sponsor of the bill, Senator Byron Dorgan said:
he will bring a bill to lift the ban on travel to Cuba to the Senate floor this summer and that more than 60 Senators will vote for it.
All of this good news has Cuba getting ready for US tourist:
Cuba’s hotels could manage a sudden influx of 1 million American tourists if the U.S. Congress lifts its 47-year ban on travel to the Communist island, Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero said.
Additionally, the Caribbean nation is set to expand its capacity of about 50,000 rooms, with groundbreaking scheduled for at least nine hotels in 2010, Marrero said. About 200,000 rooms may be added in the “medium to long-term,” he said. Cuba is also seeking investment partners for 10 golf courses and luxury hotels aimed at Americans, according to a ministry official.
Dairy Farmers Support End of Travel & Export Restrictions
Congressman Jerry Moran of Kansas is co-sponsoring legislation he to open Cuba markets for U.S. farmers and ranchers. Dairy farmers are supportive of the legislation according to the CattleNetwork:
The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) applauded yesterday’s introduction of a House bill that would allow for open travel for all Americans to Cuba and further facilitate U.S. agricultural exports to that nation.
The Travel Restriction Reform and Export Enhancement Act (H.R. 4645) was offered by House Agriculture Committee Chairman, Collin Peterson, and is currently co-sponsored by 33 other Members of Congress, including Representatives Jerry Moran of Kansas, Rosa L. DeLauro of Connecticut and Jo Ann Emerson of Missouri.
The NMPF also sees the value of ending travel restrictions to Cuba:
The other critical element that H.R. 4645 would tackle is to abolish restrictions on Americans’ rights to travel to Cuba. This would facilitate U.S. exporters’ ability to conduct business with Cuba, spurring greater demand for U.S. agricultural products.
“This bill would help to address administrative and technical barriers to U.S. dairy exports to Cuba that are not in keeping with the original spirit and intent of Congress when it determined that we should be able to export agricultural products to Cuba roughly ten years ago,” said Tom Suber, President of the U.S. Dairy Export Council. “The Cuban market holds significant promise for U.S. dairy exporters but has become increasingly difficult to supply within the past few years.”
South Floridian Travel to Cuba Sees Growth
South Floridians are traveling to Cuba on a more frequent basis. According to the Miami Herald:
Between April and June, about 55,000 people traveled to Cuba, compared to 30,000 in the three previous months, before the restrictions were lifted. The number of travelers is expected to hit 200,000 by year’s end, about double the yearly figures during the Bush restrictions. And travel executives expect the numbers to spike even higher now that new rules announced by the Obama administration — which lift all restrictions on family visits to Cuba — have taken effect.
Right-Wing Scare Tactics Against Cuban Travel
Blogger Yoani Sanchez was detained briefly in Cuba according to Reuters:
Sanchez, 34, told Reuters the agents forced her and blogger Orlando Luis Pardo into a car as they neared the demonstration in Havana’s Vedado district, took them to a spot near her home and dropped them off, throwing her purse on the street as they drove away.
And now the right-wing is all up in arms, according to the hate group that calls themselves the Heritage Foundation:
Certainly Congress has the power to change the laws so Americans can travel to Cuba, but can they make Cuba safer or freer? Or will the promised U.S. tourist bonanza just help the Cuban regime buy more police cars, hire more secret police, and tighten the noose of repression that encircles the necks of the Cuban people?
I certainly believe Cuba has a ways to go in fundamental human rights as do most who believe in establishing relations with the regime, but shining the light of day on Cuba is the best way to do it. Not promoting lies and falsehoods as the Heritage Foundation is famous for.