What to Know
- Starwood Hotels & Resorts opened Four Points Havana this week, the first new hotel opened and run by an American company since 1959.
In another sign of the thawing relations between the United States and Cuba, travelers to the island nation will get to enjoy the luxury of an American hotel while on their trip.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts opened Four Points Havana this week, the first new hotel opened and run by an American company since the Cuban Revolution in 1959.
The hotel is part of a three resort deal between the company and the Cuban government. While Cuba still owns the building that was once called the Hotel Quinta Avenida, Starwood will run the day-to-day operations.
The 186 room resort is set in the Miramar section of the city and just 15 minutes from the business areas of downtown Havana. It includes pools, a spa and sauna area as well as multiple bars and restaurants on the property.
The hotel’s arrival is the next step in the renewing of normalcy between the two countries separated by just 90 miles. President Barack Obama ordered the restoring of relations in December 2014, with both countries opening embassies less than a year later.
While travel is still restricted to certain requirements, six airlines have announced plans to start commercials flights later this year, in addition to Stonegate Bank has started issuing credit cards in what was once a cash only country.
