Tag Archive for: Airport

Arriving at Jose Marti, be prepared to wait

havana-live-aeropuerto-cuba-caosHAVANA,July 25th (HT Fernando Ravsberg) The tourist arriving in Cuba these days receives a warm welcome; the waiting area for luggage is without air conditioning. In any other airport you could say it is not such a big deal but Havana is a different story as we spent 90 minutes until the first bag appeared.

The chaos on Monday was much greater than in the past. It took 2 hours for the health inspectors to appear. People who brought food had to wait patiently because customs would not let them leave without their corresponding dried fruits passing inspection.

When we go through immigration, the only thing that seems to work at a normal speed, there was no information posted as which carousel our bags were to appear on. After a while our flight number was put on above one of the bands and after waiting there 45 minutes we were changed to another carousel without notice.

In fact there weren’t that many passengers, just about 4 flights. Seeing the chaos I was wondering what will happen in the future when US tourism is no longer prohibited and booms? What will happen when they receive 10 aircraft at the same time? How long with the tourists have to wait?

Is the energy crisis so serious that they leave the airport without air conditioning when it is crowded with tourists? This is the face of Cuba, the first a tourist sees. Leaving them in a fish bowl, dripping with sweat and waiting three hours for their luggage does not seem the best incentive to return.

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JetBlue’s First Direct Flight to Cuba Takes Off From JFK

HAVANA,  July 3   JetBlue officially began direct flights to Cuba out of New York’s Kennedy Airport Friday, becoming the first major carrier to make the trip after travel restrictions were eased by the White House earlier this year and making passengers who got to be on the virgin flight feel like part of history.


The Queens-based airline announced its plan to offer the weekly direct flights in May, but the first flight, on an Airbus 150-seat A320, was made Friday. It left JFK at noon en route to Havana’s Jose Marti International Airport.

Carlos Infante, a Cuba native who lives in Brooklyn and was aboard that first flight to Havana, said before he boarded the plane that he felt like he was a part of history.
“This is something we’re gonna talk about for years and years and years; this is an opportunity for American people to go to Cuba,” said a smiling Infante, holding his boarding pass in front of him.Unbenannt

Infante said he treasured the freedom to travel to his country of birth, direct from New York, for the first time in at least 50 years.
“I can’t explain, it’s something that’s in your heart,” Infante said.

“I don’t have words to say how I feel — this is a beautiful day.”
The weekly charter flights will leave JFK at noon each Friday, with a scheduled landing time in Havana at 3:30 p.m. Return flights leave Cuba at 4:30 p.m. and land in New York around 8 p.m.

While operated by JetBlue, the flight is being offered by Cuba Travel Services, and travelers should make arrangements directly with the carrier service provider at cubatravelservices.com.

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