Cuba has recently begun offering perks to entice visitors like Boyaryshnic from allied countries such as Russia and China as it struggles to revive a stagnant tourism sector still struggling to recover from the pandemic.
That has meant more and sometimes direct flights from Russia and China, eliminating visa requirements for Chinese visitors, and Cuba’s recent decision to accept Russia’s Mir payment cards, one of only a handful of countries to join Moscow’s alternative to Visa and Mastercard.
“It’s a long shot, Chinese and Russian visitors may provide some relief in the short term, but it’s doubtful that they will make up for the lost contingent of European and American visitors,” said Paolo Spadoni, an associate professor at Augusta University and expert on Cuban tourism.
