|
Easier money; Operators
are confident the withdrawal of US dollars
from Cuba will not affect bookings
November 22, 2004. Hotels
Magazine, IL.
Agents are being advised to warn clients
against taking US dollars into Cuba.
Earlier this month president Fidel Castro
outlawed the use of US dollars on the island
following tighter US sanctions against the
country.
They can still be exchanged at banks and
hotels, but the commission is a massive
10%.
A Thomson spokeswoman said: "We are
warning our customers not to take dollars
because the 10% fee to exchange money is
very steep. Instead holidaymakers would
be better off taking sterling or travellers'
cheques to exchange into pesos, then they
will be charged the usual 2%-3% commission."
Shops, bars and restaurants on the island
had accepted payment in US dollars since
1993, but from now on the only legal currency
is the Cuban peso. But operators say that
because the peso is linked to the US dollar,
agents should still advise clients they
may benefit from the weakness of the US
dollar when they visit Cuba.
A Thomas Cook spokeswoman said: "Customers
won't really notice any difference, either
in holiday prices or in the amount of spending
money they have.
"The only difference is they won't
be able to spend dollars in Cuba,"
she said.
Cosmos senior commercial manager Sara Gelder
said the decision was unlikely to affect
bookings as most UK holidaymakers buy all-inclusive
packages to Cuba, so take very little spending
money.
"It's quite sad but most visitors
don't spend a huge amount outside the all-inclusive
hotels - where everything is paid for in
the UK - so they won't really be affected
by the new currency laws.
"Operators have already contracted
in sterling rather than dollars in Cuba,
so we don't see this move having a huge
impact on prices," she said.
Copyright 2004 Reed Business
Information Ltd. All rights reserved
|
