Americans are visiting Cuba, but not in the numbers expected

Americans are visiting Cuba, but not in the numbers expected

HAVANA, Cuba -- It's been nearly a year since direct commercial flights
began from the U.S. to Cuba -- and Americans are making trips to the
communist nation long off-limits, but not in the numbers expected.

Claire Jerome from Boston is among the surging number of Americans
visiting Cuba. Last year, nearly 300,000 went, up 74 percent.

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"I thought there were many more Americans here, it seems like a good
time to come visit the country," Jerome told CBS News.

U.S. carriers rushed to launch service to Cuba in August after the U.S.
government approved 110 daily non-stops. But many are already cutting back.

Collin Laverty, who runs Cuba Educational Travel that organizes high-end
tours, addressed a possible gold rush that never happened.

"I think it didn't happen as fast as people thought," he said.

"I think a lot of that has to do with confusion about the legality,"
Laverty said. "Once you book your ticket what do you do? How do you book
a hotel, how do you book a tour? What support system is there here?
There's a lot of confusion. It's a tough country to navigate."

Some analysts expect two million Americans to visit Cuba annually by
2025. But a new survey finds only 2 percent are likely to plan a trip in
the next six months.

Several airlines see long-term potential, but American Airlines reduced
the number of flights to several cities, and JetBlue is using smaller
planes, dropping 300 seats a day.

On Wednesday, low-cost carrier Spirit will become the third U.S. airline
to end all service to the island.

Cuba is lacking in tourist infrastructure and conveniences like Wi-Fi.
Cruise ships seem to be the early winner as they bring the
infrastructure with them.

Source: Americans are visiting Cuba, but not in the numbers expected -
CBS News -
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/cuba-tourism-americans-visiting-us-airliners-cutting-service/