Cuba sees tourism rise, French will renovate Havana airport

More than 2 million tourists have visited Cuba this year, state media said last Wednesday, putting the country on track for a record number of visitors bringing badly needed cash to an economy facing a sharp reduction in subsidized oil from its chief ally, Venezuela.

Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero said visitor numbers were running 12 percent ahead of those last year, which already saw a record number of tourists. The surge is credited to a wave of international interest in Cuba prompted by the announcement of US-Cuba detente in December 2014. Visitor numbers are expected to get a major boost after commercial flights from the United States begin this month.

The rise in tourism has strained Cuba's infrastructure, filling hotels to capacity and creating long waits at Havana's Jose Marti International Airport. The government announced last Wednesday that Aeroports de Paris, the French government-controlled firm that runs Charles de Gaulle, Orly and other Paris airports, would receive a concession to operate Jose Marti, which would be renovated by the French firm Bouygues.