Spanish hotel group Meliá will shut down all operations in Cuba on Friday, ending its presence in a market where it runs 14,000 rooms. The decision, executed through its Portuguese subsidiary Ilha Bela Gestao e Turismo, follows what the company described as severe operational, legal and financial difficulties stemming from the U.S. embargo.
The withdrawal comes after Washington blocked nearly all oil shipments to Cuba since January and the Trump administration introduced secondary sanctions in May targeting foreign companies doing business with Cuban state entity Gaesa. Meliá had already closed half its Cuban capacity and announced in June it would halt operations at 15 of its 34 hotels on the island.
Occupancy across Meliá's Cuban properties fell to just 34.1 percent in the first quarter. The company managed 15 hotels jointly with Gaesa and the remaining 19 with Cuba's tourism ministry.