Jazz Festival – Havana International Jazz Festival Tour Announced

<p style="text-align: justify;">The 2011 Official Havana International Jazz Festival Tour set for December 11 to 19 was announced this week by Cuba Education Tours. The 27th anniversary jazz festival junket includes a nine-day stay at the five star Hotel National de Cuba on Havana’s swank Malecón oceanfront. This is the fifth year Cuba Education Tours has hosted the Cuban jazz celebration trip. Festival president, jazz titan, and five time Latin Grammy Award winner Chucho Valdés, and the Cuban Institute of Music endorse the tour. Read More

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Cuba survives global recession without tourism rebates

<p style="text-align: justify;">Cuba has been able to overcome the global recession in tourism without resorting to price drops, Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero said in the keynote speech of the FITCuba tourism fair in Havana.Amid the recession, the island logged in a 4-percent visitor growth in 2010. This high season, which just concluded, brought a record 10-percent rise in visitors. The tourism ministry has not published any revenue figures recently.“In less than 10 years, Cuba turned into the third-largest tourist destination in the insular Caribbean,” Marrero said. Read More

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U.S., Cuban experts to discuss oil safety at conference

<p style="text-align: justify;">At least one Cuban official will participate in an oil safety conference sponsored by the Houston-based International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) this month.Fidel llizastegui Pérez, a process safety and risk management specialist with Cuba’s Office for Environment and Nuclear Safety Regulation (ORASEN), is scheduled to speak about blowout prevention, spill response, containment and cleanup at the 2011 IADC Environmental Conference &amp; Exhibition, in Trinidad &amp; Tobago May 12-13. Read More

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Mexico Happy for Being Guest of Honor in Cuban Fair, Says Tourism Minister

<p style="text-align: justify;">The Minister of Tourism of Mexico, Gloria Guevara, said in a news conference at the Cuban Hotel Nacional, that her Government is very grateful for being the guest of honor of the 31st International Tourism Fair (FIT Cuba 2011), in which over 30 nations are participating. Read More

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Holguin and its Half, the Romerias de Mayo Festival

<p style="text-align: justify;">By Amauris Betancourt Gomez / radioangulo.icrt.cu / Tuesday, 03 May 2011 12:22. Raul Torres playing the piano at the mid night concert of the Romerias de Mayo festival underway in Holguin. The 18th edition of the Romerias de Mayo festival is already true in Holguin city with the performance of the Circus Theater Identikit group (Argentina), the concert by Italian pianist Luciano Bellini, a photo exhibition by Brazilian Conceicao Praun.Holguin Delighted with the Performance of Renowned Italian Pianist Read More

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Cuba seeks investors to build golf courses

<p style="text-align: justify;">Cuba is moving forward in its negotiations with foreign investors to build 16 golf courses, Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz said Tuesday in Havana, during the opening of the International Tourism Fair. The negotiations include the construction and sale of homes near the courses to foreign buyers.The Gaviota hotel group, operated by the military, "is developing a strategy of diversification by investing in marinas" and "golf courses," Marrero said, according to Agence France-Presse. At present, Cuba has two golf courses, one in Havana, the other in Varadero. Read More

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Cubans Rejoice at Beatification of John Paul II

<p style="text-align: justify;">Polish Blessed Is Only Pope to Have Visited Island. HAVANA, Cuba, MAY 3, 2011 (Zenit.org).- The apostolic nuncio in Cuba says Blessed John Paul II was "a friend of Cuba," who followed the situation of the island with careful interest and affection for the people.Archbishop Giovanni Becciu said this Sunday, when he presided over a Mass in the Havana cathedral in honor of the newly beatified John Paul II. Read More

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Mexican cruise line seeks Cuban itinerary

<p style="text-align: justify;">Mexico-based cruise operator Cruceros Ocean Star would like to include Cuba in a new Gulf of Mexico itinerary, Mexican Tourism Minister Gloria Guevara told her Cuban counterpart Manuel Marrero during the FITCuba tourism fair in Havana, according to Mexican daily La Jornada.The startup cruise line began operating one 520-cabin ship along the Mexican Pacific Coast in April. The Ocean Star Pacific, home-ported in Acapulco, offers seven-day cruises from Acapulco to Cabo San Lucas and back. Read More

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Noah, Havana catamarans come to UAE with new dealer, Bristol Marine Middle East

<p style="text-align: justify;">With more than 50 years' experience in the marine industry, Bristol Marine Middle East has become a leader in yacht sales and yacht charter in the UAE. Established on the Dubai Marina, the company is specialised in luxury monohulls and multihulls yacht sales and custom yacht services. Since the new partnership with the Alu Marine French custom yacht builder, they are now proposing two new series of power and sailing catamarans. Read More

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Radio Martí Goes Online (But Does It Matter?)

<p style="text-align: justify;">By Kyle Munzenrieder, Tue., May 3 2011 @ 12:30PM. The U.S. government spends millions of dollars every year transmitting news (or something like it) to Cuba through Radio y Televisión Martí's studios in Miami with the aim of balancing the government-controlled Cuban press. But there's little indication that the program is effective or that many Cubans receive the broadcasts. Now the Office of Cuba Broadcasting is trying to expand its message through new media, but it's doubtful that move will expand the programming's reach. Read More

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