'Highly politicized process'
Cuba expert Collin Laverty, president of Cuba Educational Travel, called it 'a breath of fresh air in a highly politicized process of confusion, anxiety and speculation which led to an excessive measure by the State Department.'
He added: 'Given that the initial decision to increase the Cuba travel warning was politically motivated, the United States government is righting its wrong by assessing that Americans need not reconsider travel to Cuba in order to stay safe.'
'Most people have no idea what levels mean or the difference between them,' Bruce Nierenberg, chairman of Victory Cruise Lines, told Seatrade Cruise News. 'What makes a difference is when the politicians decide to use travel as a political football.'
Deployment surges ahead
Though major lines seemed to have little trouble selling Cuba during the months the Level 3 warning was in place, some smaller operators—those that offer longer sailings around the island, with more port calls—did report an impact.
Similar to Victory's experience, last November Lindblad Expeditions reported few new bookings, while there were some cancellations. CFO Craig Felenstein forecast then that Cuba would still be profitable for Lindblad, but not at the return originally projected.
Meanwhile, Royal Caribbean International president and CEO Michael Bayley had said that when the warning broke in the media, the company received a spike in queries from customers and travel partners. 'Everybody was trying to seek clarity but after, literally, a few days, things just returned to normal and the business is very good for our Cuba product,' he said.
'One of the world's safest countries'
In Laverty's view, 'Cuba continues to be one of the safest countries in the world to visit and hundreds of thousands of Americans—and millions of global travelers—enjoy all that it has to offer each year with no health or security risks to note.'
Laverty added that foreign service officers in Washington and diplomats on the ground in Havana favor increased travel to support the Cuban people.
'I look forward to President Trump and Secretary [of State Mike] Pompeo addressing Cuba in a smart and respectful manner and opening up travel and trade further,' Laverty said.
The State Department had put the Level 3 warning in place last September after US Embassy employees in Havana were allegedly 'targeted in specific attacks' that caused them to suffer 'significant injuries' including 'ear complaints and hearing loss, dizziness, headache, fatigue, cognitive issues and difficulty sleeping.'
The State Department's travel advisory scale has one higher level, 4 ('do not travel').
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