14ymedio, Havana, 8 August 2022 — The Canadian Blue Diamond Group will add Havana’s historic Hotel Inglaterra to its operations in Cuba starting next November. The news was announced last week by the communication director of the company on the island, Miguel García Núñez, in statements to Radio Habana Cuba.
García Núñez added that, in September, the hotel company will reopen the Regis, also in the capital, with the Mystique seal, aimed at the “adult segment.”
The Inglaterra, located in front of Parque Central, a few steps from the Capitol and the Alicia Alonso Grand Theater, is the oldest hotel in the country, almost 147 years old, and has been declared a World Heritage Site and a National Monument.
In 2018, the Marriott chain published that it would take over the management of the hotel, but in the end the operation did not materialize. The American company which, thanks to Barack Obama’s diplomatic thaw, signed an agreement with the Cuban government to manage the Four Points by Sheraton in the capital, left the island in 2020, after then-President Donald Trump revoked its license.
In fact, the expansion of Blue Diamond contrasts to the withdrawal from Cuba of large foreign tourist conglomerates. Blue Diamond was recently granted the exclusive administration of Cayo Largo del Sur.
On July 18, the Canadian firm reported that it would reopen the Paseo del Prado hotel on August 1, under the name of Royalton Habana. It was a surprise, since the establishment, one of the most luxurious in the Cuban capital, was managed, together with the state-owned Grupo Gaviota, by Accor.
Asked by this newspaper, the French group limited itself to confirming by email that it would not operate the establishment from August 1, without offering any reason. After an expensive renovation, publicized in December 2019, the hotel was closed as part of the measures imposed to contain the covid-19 pandemic.
In its July press release, Blue Diamond did not detail whether it had redesigned the interior, simply announcing that it would provide “stunning views from inside and out,” thanks to “its modern look, as well as the views afforded by the rooms, the three restaurants and bars, and the rooftop infinity pool that overlooks the Bay of Havana and the Castillo de San Salvador de la Punta.
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