Shortly after five within the morning of this Sunday, April 18, air connections between Russia and Varadero were officially restored, after the landing on the Juan Gualberto Gómez International Airport of a flight from Moscow with around 500 passengers.
Through the Anex Tours tour operator, the AZUR Air airline accomplished the primary trip from the Russian capital to the island’s principal sun and beach destination in greater than a yr, since in March 2020 the flights between the 2 cities were suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In line with the pictures released by journalist Pedro Arturo Rizo, from TV Yumurí, all of the travelers went through health checks on the Matanzas airport before leaving for his or her respective accommodations in Cuba’s most recognized tourist destination, situated within the north of the province. of Matanzas.
Emilio Lozada García, general director of bilateral affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had announced on Twitter the reestablishment of operations between the 2 destinations. The official also pondered the importance of tourism in relations between Russia and Cuba, and classified it as “a bridge of exchange between sister nations.”
Mañana,18 de abril, regresan los turistas rusos a Varadero. El turismo es también una esfera importante en nuestros vínculos bilaterales y un puente de intercambio entre nuestros pueblos hermanos. #Cuba #Rusia pic.twitter.com/KwGS5VWmto
— Emilio Lozada García (@EmilioLozadaG) April 18, 2021
Flights between Moscow and Varadero were planned to resume on April 1, but logistical arrangements to be selected by the Russian aeronautical authorities delayed the restart of operations, Juan Carlos Escalona, the tourism adviser on the Cuban embassy in Russia, told Prensa Latina.
Once these negotiations have been solved, it is predicted that seven flights from different airlines and between 2,500 and three,500 Russian travelers will arrive in Varadero every week from the Eurasian country, one among Cuba’s principal tourist market. Along with AZUR Air, other airlines corresponding to Aeroflot, Rossiya, NordWind and Royal Flight may even fly to the Matanzas beach resort, because of this of the negotiations carried out by the Cuban delegation on the Moscow International Tourism Fair, held last March.
In line with a schedule released by the Cuban Airports and Aeronautical Services Enterprise (ECASA), Royal Flight should begin its flights to Varadero on Thursday, April 22, while NordWind will start on Saturday, April 24, although this planning could also be modified resulting from adjustments carried out by the airlines.
Russian tourism to Cuba registered a rise of near 30% in 2019, when the island received almost 178,000 visitors from that Eurasian country, a figure cataloged as a record for that market that has turn into one among the emerging issuers to the island.
The Cuban Ministry of Tourism estimated that in 2020 the variety of Russian visitors would reach 200,000, however the coronavirus pandemic paralyzed the worldwide tourism sector for several months and blurred the recovery plans and eventual growth on the island.
At the top of that yr, the Eurasian country was placed among the many top 10 issuers of tourists to the Caribbean nation, with a complete of 47,742 travelers, despite the travel restrictions imposed by COVID-19. Official figures detail that thus far in 2021, greater than 14,000 Russian travelers have vacationed in different tourist destinations which might be operating in Cuba.
The island’s most famous resort, whose beaches are among the many 25 best on the earth in keeping with TripAdvisor, requires visitors to comply with health protocols that include the presentation of a negative PCR certificate for coronavirus, carried out 72 hours before the departure of the flight, and carrying out the identical test upon arrival on the Cuban airport.
