Spanish airline flying to Cuba, tourism reopening

An inaugural flight from the Spanish airline World2Fly arrived in Havana on Wednesday, as tourism venues resumed business in Cuba after authorities announced a relaxation of COVID-19 related regulations.

Fifty passengers flew from Madrid to Havana, including Spanish billionaire and airline owner, Miguel Fluxà Roselló, who cut a ribbon at the airport upon arrival.

Word2Fly, which began operations amid the pandemic at the beginning of this year, is focused on the Spanish market bound for the Caribbean in Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Cancun.

Passengers arriving in Havana on the inaugural flight had their temperature taken, and PCR tests were administered free of charge before leaving the airport.

Fluxà Rosselló's hotel consortium Iberostar announced that a gradual reopening of its 16 facilities in Cuba has begun, most reopening between November and January.  Daily flights will resume only in 2022.

Cuban healthcare authorities have said that by November, 90% of the population on the island will be vaccinated with nationally produced antigens: a mix of the two Soberana vaccines or with Abdala.

Cuba kept the pandemic under relative control in 2020 in part due to the closure of its borders and relatively strict isolation measures, but the latest cases reported show extensive presence of the Delta variant.

On Wednesday, health authorities reported 825,351 COVID-19 cases and 6,978 deaths.