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| Mogote Hills in the farmlands of Vinales, Cuba |
Good news for clients who have Cuba on their bucket lists. Two tour operators have re-upped and another is making its long-delayed debut. Abercrombie & Kent USA, which had to scrap its plans to operate Cuba programs in 2011, will begin offering small group journeys, limited to 24 guests, next month. A&K has been granted a license by the U.S. Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control to offer People-to-People educational exchange programs to Cuba.
The program will go beyond Havana to Caibarien in northern Cuba, and west to the rural countryside and lush farmland of Vinales with the chance to experience Cuban culture, architecture, agriculture, music and cuisine during one-to-one educational exchanges with local residents.
Tauck reports that it will again be offering departures of its People-to-People cultural exchange journeys to Cuba, following the recent renewal of its license to operate tours to the island nation. The Connecticut-based company had been among several tour operators awaiting license renewals from OFAC, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, Tauck notes.
Tauck’s first departure to Cuba under its renewed license will begin on October 6, 2013, with additional trips scheduled throughout the remainder of the year. The company notes its current license is valid for two full years so the company won’t require a renewed license until mid-2015.
With a two-year license renewal in hand, Insight Cuba, looks to the future regarding its partnership with General Tours World Traveler, which will continue to make travel agent referrals to Insight Cuba for its 150 published departures, presently scheduled through June 2014, with new dates forthcoming for travel through 2015.
The longest running operator of legal people-to-people trips to Cuba, Insight Cuba offers handpicked experiences for groups of no more than 24 people. Agents earn a referral fee on all bookings.
Earlier this years Globus and Central Holidays began offering Cuba itineraries as well. For details on all of the above programs and more, search “Cuba” at www.travelagentcentral.com.