For those authorized to visit Cuba, it’s about to get considerably easier to make their way to Havana.
Delta Air Lines recently announced it will resume service to Havana, Cuba, on April 10, 2023. As Delta explained, it will operate two daily nonstop flights from Miami International Airport to Havana, and, likewise, two daily flights back to Miami.
Interestingly, Delta resumed service to Cuba in 2016 after what the airline called a “55-year hiatus.” That service, however, was again suspended in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The flights to Havana will be on Airbus A320 aircraft offering First Class, Delta Comfort+, and main cabin sections,” Delta explains. “All passengers on flights from Miami to Havana can enjoy complimentary Delta Studio featuring more than 1,000 hours of on-demand, in-flight entertainment and exclusive partner-curated content from Peloton and Spotify.”
Somewhat Expected News
In 2019, the Trump administration further restricted Americans’ ability to travel to Cuba by banning group tours and cruise ship stops as well as prohibiting group educational and cultural trips. This move was intended to tighten economic pressure on the Cuban government.
Further restrictions included prohibiting U.S. citizens from attending or organizing conferences in Cuba and participating in public performances, clinics, workshops, competitions, and exhibitions there.
Earlier this fall, however, the Biden administration announced it will expand U.S. flights to Havana by adding 13 weekly American Airlines departures from Miami and a weekly JetBlue departure to Havana from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, according to Reuters. Those flights are in addition to six daily American Airlines flights and three JetBlue flights on weekdays to Havana from the Florida airports.
That shift in policy isn’t surprising given that the Biden administration announced last spring that it planned to authorize commercial and charter flights to locations beyond Havana.
Other important changes announced at the time included reinstating provisions for group “people-to-people” educational travel.
Traveling To Cuba
The U.S. State Department’s Embassy in Cuba explains that traveling to Cuba for tourism is still prohibited. However, some types of travel to Cuba are allowed.
For example, the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control notes that authorized travel to Cuba is allowed for visiting family, conducting professional research and professional meetings, and attending religious activities. Other types of authorized travel are to support the Cuban people, conduct humanitarian projects, and attend activities of private foundations, research, or educational institutes.
You can learn more about what type of travel to Cuba is allowed, and which types of travel are prohibited, on the State Department’s Traveling To Cuba webpage.
For more about Cuba, be sure to read:
