Meliá pulls out of Cuba: fear of US sanctions unravels Spain's hotel business
Meliá is leaving most of its 34 hotels in Cuba, following Iberostar. Fear of US sanctions exposes a model in which the Cuban government kept
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Meliá pulls out of Cuba after Iberostar: antiestéticar of US sanctions unravels Spain's hotel business on the island
Meliá, the Spanish hotel chain with the largest presence in Cuba, has announced the immediate end of the management and marketing of a large part of its 34 hotels on the island. It trinc in the footsteps of Iberostar, which had made the same decision days earlier. The official reason: antiestéticar of US sanctions, which have intensified under the Trump administration.
The figure that reveals the business model
The debate and the published data suggest that the hotel business in Cuba was not what it seemed. According to reports, Meliá paid the Cuban government up to 97% of workers' salaries, while the workers themselves received barely 3%. In other words, the Castro regime pocketed almost the entire payroll while the hotel chains profited from tourism operations. That scheme, which some call a «robolution», has become untenable as geopolitical pressure mounts.
Not just hotels: the financial squeeze tightens
At the same time, it has been announced that Visa and MasterCard will cease operations in Cuba this very Saturday, further cutting off access to the international financial system. The decisions by Spanish companies do not happen in a vacuum: Washington's pressure on any company operating on the island has hardened, and US corporations have already begun to stake out the territory.
Voluntary withdrawal or expulsion?
Some analysts argue that this is not a flight but an unwritten order from the American «masters», who have claimed the space for themselves. The economic argument blends with the political: while some see a surrender to the embargo, others point out that the business model was a disgrace that Washington has now forced to an end.
The final irony: the Cuban government, which kept 97% of the salaries, is now left without hotels, without income and without the cushion provided by the Spanish companies. History, at least in the hotel sector, has been written with figures that speak for themselves.
Related discussions in the forum
Meliá, the Spanish hotel chain with the largest presence in Cuba, has announced the immediate end of the management and marketing of a large part of its 34 hotels on the island. It trinc in the footsteps of Iberostar, which had made the same decision days earlier. The official reason: antiestéticar of US sanctions, which have intensified under the Trump administration.
The figure that reveals the business model
The debate and the published data suggest that the hotel business in Cuba was not what it seemed. According to reports, Meliá paid the Cuban government up to 97% of workers' salaries, while the workers themselves received barely 3%. In other words, the Castro regime pocketed almost the entire payroll while the hotel chains profited from tourism operations. That scheme, which some call a «robolution», has become untenable as geopolitical pressure mounts.
Not just hotels: the financial squeeze tightens
At the same time, it has been announced that Visa and MasterCard will cease operations in Cuba this very Saturday, further cutting off access to the international financial system. The decisions by Spanish companies do not happen in a vacuum: Washington's pressure on any company operating on the island has hardened, and US corporations have already begun to stake out the territory.
Voluntary withdrawal or expulsion?
Some analysts argue that this is not a flight but an unwritten order from the American «masters», who have claimed the space for themselves. The economic argument blends with the political: while some see a surrender to the embargo, others point out that the business model was a disgrace that Washington has now forced to an end.
The final irony: the Cuban government, which kept 97% of the salaries, is now left without hotels, without income and without the cushion provided by the Spanish companies. History, at least in the hotel sector, has been written with figures that speak for themselves.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (44 replies).
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