5 Reasons Travel To Cuba Is A Huge Deal

Photo by David Cogswell

For Americans, travel to Cuba has been off limits for more than 50 years, creating an allure around this forbidden Caribbean island with its fine cigars, deserted white-sand beaches, classic cars and tasty rum that just about beats out every other destination. The fervor surrounding travel to the country is only growing to a fever pitch as the U.S. gets closer and closer to lifting travel restrictions to the country. These are five of the many reasons interest in Cuba is a big deal.

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Heightened Curiosity

If you ever want to generate interest in something, tell people it’s forbidden. Nothing piques human curiosity like the off-limits. The fact that travel to Cuba is restricted is probably the single biggest region that visiting the region is such a huge deal for people. Places that are exotic or seen as adventurous are trending right now, and that is doubly so with Cuba, which is not only exotic and adventurous, but also forbidden.

Location, Location, Location

The island is only 90 miles off the coast of Florida, but as the country opens up and restrictions on U.S. travelers are dropped, the distance is becoming smaller and smaller. Cuba will  be even easier to reach when regular flights are operational. When airlines begin to fly to there will not only still be an allure of mystery but getting there will be quick, easy and relatively inexpensive.

READ MORE: 5 Hotels and Resorts in Cuba We Can’t Wait to Visit

Obama Will Be There

In the middle of a contentious election season, President Obama is planning a visit to the island nation, which will likely train the media’s eye on the country even more closely – briefly providing some respite from the wall-to-wall political coverage that is currently dominating the 24-hour news cycle.

And, when cameras are trained on a destination, it’s hard to avoid the extra publicity that location will receive – Cuba’s welcoming people, historic sites and authentic culture are likely to drive interest among American travelers.

Authenticity

Despite all of the publicity the island has received, it’s still fairly off-limits to Americans and it’s not overrun by droves of U.S. tourists visiting the country for a beach vacation. And the appeal to get to Cuba before everyone else does – despite the fact that Canadians and Europeans have been traveling to the island for years – is a very real desire for American visitors – and it leads to the persistent interest in travel to the country.

READ MORE: 10 Cuban Foods We Can't Wait To Try

Cuban Culture

From food, to cigars, to the people and the rum, Cuban culture has long been a draw for U.S. tourists. So much of Cuban culture has been off-limits to Americans for so long that there is a huge appetite for consumption of its consumer goods, like cigars and rum, to its authenticity, with visitors desiring to understand Cuban traditions, music, customs and people.

While Cuba is definitely opening up, you can’t just hop a plane to the country right now – and Americans still likely won’t be able to do that when flights begin operating from the U.S. directly to the island nation. Before you go, make sure you have all of the facts.