Tourist group Gaviota celebrated the 25th anniversary of its foundation with new accomplishments, among them the opening of the Meliá Marina Varadero Hotel with its first condominiums and the gradual completion of the ambitious Marina Gaviota Varadero project, and hotels Pestana Cayo Coco and Eurostars Cayo Santa María. 1,020 rooms in a new hotel to be called Valentín Perla Blanca - managed by the Spanish hotel chain of the same name, in Cayos de Villa Clara - and 1176 in the Meliá Jardines del Rey hotel, Cayo Coco, are scheduled to be completed this year. These new facilities will bring the number of hotel rooms for international tourism in the country to 62,000; Gaviota in particular, surpasses all the other 55 hotel chains currently operating in the country, with 24,000 rooms. From 2015-2017, 14,000 new hotel rooms in Havana, Varadero, Cayos de Villa Clara, Ciego de Ávila and Camagüey are scheduled to be added to Gaviota’s accommodation portfolio, as well as projects planed for eastern Cuba, primarily in Holguín and Baracoa. Havana, which hosted this year’s edition of FITCUBA dedicated to historic Cuban cities, is one of our greatest scenes of development in this period. For the new accommodations, exceptional locations have been selected in the central historic district. Currently, Gaviota has 1,297 hotel rooms in the capital and some of its hotels in the city, such as the Quinta Avenida Habana, Occidental Miramar and H10 Habana Panorama, are renowned for the quality of accommodation, comfort and hospitality they offer. Intense work is currently underway to convert the historic Manzana de Gómez block into a magnificent hotel. Scheduled to be inaugurated in 2016, it will have 246 rooms and is located next to famed Central Park. We are talking about the imminent consolidation of one of the most comprehensive tourist and cultural spaces in Havana. Toward the coastline, close to the city’s most famous symbol, the Morro, Gaviota plans to inaugurate two new hotels in 2017, one built on Prado and Malecón, with 210 rooms and the Packard, with 261 rooms. With determination and dynamism the group is also developing in Varadero, and the keys to the north of Cuba’s central provinces. Work is intense and progressing well. By 2016, in Varadero alone - Cuba’s principal tourist resort which served as the location for FITCUBA2013 - Gaviota should complete 1,613 new rooms in two magnificent hotels being built on Las Conchas beach, as well as a third project in Cayo Buba. Meanwhile work continues on the Marina Gaviota Varadero, currently the most important in the Caribbean, with the opening of the commercial zone and new condominiums also advancing. Between Cayo Santa María and Cayo Las Brujas, from 2015-2017 some 2,736 rooms will be completed, by which time there will be 12,800 hotel rooms available in Cayos de Villa Clara, reaching its full potential. The presence of the state enterprise Gaviota S.A. has likewise been strengthened in Coco and Guillermo Keys and the plan is to continue growth, with a competitive hotel complex, more services, new attractions and continual improvement of facilities to reposition Jardines del Rey in the vanguard of Cuban tourism, together with other Cuban hotel chains in the destination. The plan is currently advancing and by 2017, 3,812 rooms in Jardines del Rey, as well as Cayo Paredón Grande, are expected to be completed. The works underway will, without a doubt, create a flourishing, world class destination, with modern hotels, a marina at Bautista cove with 300 berths, tourist towns and other offers. Prestigious international chains such as Meliá, Iberostar, Occidental, Blau, H10, Riu, Pestana and Blue Diamond, manage 87% of Gaviota hotels, collaboration which has enabled the Cuban company to grow, gain experience, acquire know how and access new technologies and markets. In addition to this great hotel universe managed by international companies, are Gaviota’s self-managed hotels with 3,484 rooms throughout the eastern, central and western regions of the country, providing a world of options for diverse interests, tastes and audiences - bright, fun, hospitable hotels; all inclusive hotels for adults and children located on some of Cuba’s best beaches, renowned for their wedding and honeymoon services. Hotels which, through constant concern for their customers, experience, quality and caring treatment, are consistently praised in travel forums; and as the greatest sign of recognition are among the hotels with the highest number of returning tourists. One of these is the five star Hotel Playa Cayo Santa María, in Cayos de Villa Clara, with Spa, Cigar Bar and other luxury facilities befitting its class. A hotel recently incorporated into the great Gaviota family with a range of services, positive environment, celebrated for the quality of its restaurants and food of exquisite tastes and aromas. In Jardines del Rey - north of Ciego de Ávila - Hotel Playa Coco is one of Cayo Coco´s most exclusive accommodations. Its magnificent beach, close by, provides guests with a sense of complete freedom and relaxation. Fine cuisine, meticulous service and comfortable rooms with the classic ingredients of a typical Caribbean hotel make Hotel Playa Coco an excellent option. Hotel Playa Costa Verde, north of Holguín is also part of this assortment. A modern, functional, lively hotel, renowned for its popularity, excellent services and exceptional care, located on the edge of a dream beach, are qualities which have afforded the hotel an enviable position in principal markets. For now, our hotel options are completed under the banner of Hotels Playa. Hotel Playa Pesquero, inaugurated bv Comandante en Jefe Fidel Castro on January 21, 2003, at which time he stated that Cuba would work to develop and attract “peaceful, healthy and secure tourism.” The beach is a jewel and the hotel a milestone in Cuban and Caribbean hospitality, in size and scale. A universe of specialty restaurants adorns its dining options, together with numerous bars. A hotel with abundant recreational and entertainment options, designed to provide maximum customer satisfaction. There, a new Gaviota offer is about to be made available: the Premium Brach Service, with 56 high standard rooms, two Beach Suites and Spa, as well as bar and restaurant offers. With this initial experience, Hotels Playa, including Suites Playa in the Keys, part of the Playa Cayo Santa María and Playa Coco hotels, will begin to operate in the luxury sector. (www.gaviota-grupo.com)
