CUBA TOURISM COLLAPSE DEEPENS AS BLACKOUTS AND FUEL CRISIS BITE

Cuba’s tourism sector is unraveling under a widening energy and economic crisis, with visitor numbers dropping far below pre-pandemic levels as blackouts, fuel shortages, flight disruptions, and worsening infrastructure make travel harder across the island. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that Cuba received fewer than 36,000 international visitors in March 2026, compared with a pre-2019 monthly average of nearly 400,000.

The collapse matters because tourism is one of Cuba’s main sources of hard currency. Reuters reported in April that tourism accounted for as much as 10% of Cuba’s foreign currency earnings in 2024, but that many hotels and services from Havana to Varadero, Cayo Santa María, Cayo Coco, and other destinations had been forced to close as fuel shortages led airlines to cut flights. Reuters also reported that international tourist arrivals plunged 56% year over year in February.

The fuel crisis is now affecting more than tourism. Reuters reported earlier this month that protests flared in Havana as power cuts deepened, after Cuba’s energy minister said the country had run out of diesel and fuel oil. The Guardian also reported that blackouts have lasted up to 22 hours in some areas, disrupting transport, food storage, schools, medical care, and public services.

U.S. policy is one major part of the crisis. Reuters and Le Monde both describe recent U.S. restrictions on fuel shipments as a key pressure point, while Cuba’s government says the blockade and sanctions are driving shortages and humanitarian harm. The United States argues that Cuba’s military-linked economic structure and state mismanagement are central causes of the island’s hardship.

That internal structure is also under scrutiny. Reuters reported that GAESA, a Cuban military-run conglomerate, controls major parts of the economy, including five-star hotels, the Mariel port, a major commercial bank, supermarkets, gas stations, and remittance businesses. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has accused GAESA of hoarding wealth for Cuba’s military elite, while Cuba denies corruption is the cause of the crisis and says U.S. sanctions are suffocating the population.

The public-health strain is becoming harder to separate from the economic crisis. Le Monde reported that fuel shortages have crippled garbage collection and worsened health risks, including dengue, chikungunya, and new forms of viral hepatitis linked to poor sanitation and untreated water. The same report cited United Nations experts saying fuel scarcity is preventing people from reaching hospitals and children from attending school, with large surgery and vaccination backlogs.

The tourism collapse therefore points to something larger than a weak travel season. It shows how Cuba’s energy grid, transport system, health services, foreign-currency model, and international relationships are now failing at the same time. For residents, the consequences are immediate: blackouts, food spoilage, medicine shortages, transport problems, and fewer tourism-linked jobs. For the region, the risks include deeper migration pressure, more unrest, and new friction between Havana, Washington, and Cuba’s remaining partners.

The central question is whether Cuba can stabilize fuel access and basic services before the tourism sector loses even more capacity. If visitor numbers remain near current levels, the island may lose one of its few major channels for foreign currency at the same time its government needs money for fuel, food, medicine, infrastructure repairs, and public order.

Fact-check date: 27 May 2026
Sources: Wall Street Journal, Reuters, The Guardian, Le Monde

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