Air Italy Opens Direct Flights to Havana

Air Italy kicked off direct flights to Havana on with the arrival last week at the Jose Marti International Airport of a Boeing 767 with 200 passengers on board, including a delegation of Italian journalists. The initiative constitutes the first direct connection between Italy and Cuba through that air carrier.

The director of the Cuban Tourism Office in Italy, Jose Antonio Serguera, told reporters that Air Italy previously flew to Havana through third countries, particularly in Eastern Europe, like Poland. From now on, the Italian air company will maintain weekly flights from Rome to Havana, every Friday, with a stopover in the city of Milan.

Air Italy’s sales manager Aurora Bignardi thanked the Cuban Civil Aeronautics Institute and the Cuban Tourism Ministry for their support of the project, which she dubbed “a dream” of Air Italy’s president Giuseppe Gentile.

With the new service Cuban tourism authorities expect to increase the number of Italian tourists visiting the island, which has already surpassed 130, 000 vacationers annually. The figure has turned Italy into the third major source of tourists to Cuba after Canada and Great Britain.

The strategy followed by the Cuban Tourism Ministry is aimed at distinguishing Cuba not only as a sun-and-beach destination, but also as an attractive place for those looking for cultural, ecologic and health tourism.