Cuba to court foreign investment in theme park tourism projects

Cuba plans to court foreign investment in the tourism sector with

proposed theme parks and water parks, according to the Tourism Ministry.

Reinaldo Daniel Alonso, director of Development, Investment and

Business at the ministry, told reporters recently some 140 new projects

could be included in an updated investment portfolio the government

plans to unveil at the 2017 Havana International Fair in November.

The proposed projects include many non-hotel related investments,

such as water parks and theme parks, he said, though expanding the

island's hotel capacity is also a major goal.

The portfolio will also feature new golf courses that are independent

of hotel and real estate development, such as two being built in the

resort of Varadero and in the eastern province of Holguin.

New hotel projects are slated for Vinales, a picturesque valley

located 175 kilometers west of Havana, and Trinidad, a colonial town

situated 315 kilometers southeast of the capital.

The government's tourism development plan envisions building 224 new

hotels and expanding 32 existing ones by the year 2030, to boost the

island's total number of hotel rooms from the current 67,000 to 103,000.

Tourism arrivals have increased in Cuba, following the restoration of

ties with the United States under former President Barack Obama, with

14.5 percent more international visitors in 2016 over the year before.

This year, Cuban officials hope to welcome some 4.2 million visitors.