First direct Brazil flight to take off in July

First direct Brazil flight to take off in July

CUBA STANDARD — Flag carrier Cubana de Aviación is reopening a route to
Brazil with a Havana-São Paulo flight on July 10, the tourism ministry
said in a press release.

The once-a-week flight, on a 262-passenger IL 96-300, leaves on
Wednesdays and returns on Thursdays.

No Brazilian airline is offering nonstop flights to Cuba. Brazilian
visits have risen modestly over the past decade, to 16,000 in 2012.
Also, Brazilian business activities in Cuba have intensified over the
past years, producing an increase in business travel from Brazil to
Cuba. Finally, as the government of Brazil is negotiating to contract
6,000 Cuban doctors, travel from Cuba to Brazil may be rising as early
as this year.

Cubana is marketing its Brazil flights via Cuban tour operators, the
Brazilian embassy in Havana, the Brazilian Export and Investment
Promotion Agency (APEX), and the Brazilian Association of Tourism
Operators (Braztoa).

"The more than 16,000 Brazilians that visited us in 2012 constitute a
number far removed from the potential that country represents," wrote
the Cuban tourism ministry in a press release. "Without giving up sun
and beaches, our destination will show Brazilian visitors its security,
culture and history, and the rich nature we have."

Source: "First direct Brazil flight to take off in July « Cuba Standard,
your best source for Cuban business news" -
http://www.cubastandard.com/2013/06/29/first-direct-brazil-flight-to-take-off-in-july/