Once an island that welcomed some 2.3 million visitors last year, Cuba is now facing the collapse of its key tourism industry after Donald Trump cut off Venezuelan oil supplies and pressured Mexico to stop shipments. After former US President Barack Obama restored diplomatic relations with the Caribbean island in 2015, Cuba saw a peak in holidaymakers in 2018, with nearly 4.8 million visitors.

However, today, despite February being the height of the tourist season, the iconic Hotel Raquel, off Havana’s historic old plaza, is one of more than two dozen state-owned hotels that have closed their doors as the Cuban government attempts to respond to the deepening fuel crisis. Cuba has received no oil or fuel for a month, and, as a result, life for the island’s nearly 10 million inhabitants is slowly grinding to a halt, with schools suspended and rubbish piling up in the streets.

According to Mandy Pruna, the period after 2015 was “the best era for tourism in Cuba”: “All sectors of society benefited from that […] You saw people painting their houses, opening new businesses. For me it was fantastic,” according to CNN World.

However, the Trump administration has cut the flow of oil to Cuba, which relies on foreign imports for around 60% of its fuel needs, in an attempt to force the communist-run island into making political and economic reforms. On top of this, Cuba does not appear to have any remaining allies willing to supply the hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of fuel needed to power the economy.

At many schools, classes have been suspended, and workers have been furloughed to save energy, while flights from Russia and Canada have been cancelled as there is no longer enough jet fuel for longer international flights. Both are also repatriating citizens. The UK and Canada have warned their citizens to avoid non-essential travel to Cuba.

Many government-run hospitals have also cut services, while a lack of fuelled collection lorries has caused rubbish to pile up across whole neighbourhoods. At night, the lights are switched off, plunging Havana into total darkness.

“I need gas to be able to work, I need tourists to be able to work,” Mr Pruna added – one of an estimated 300,000 Cubans who now make a living from the industry.

Even before the recent crisis, when the first Trump administration added Cuba to a list of state sponsors of terror and the onset of COVID-19, the number of European tourists arriving in Cuba tumbled. Revenue from the tourism sector in Cuba fell by 70% between 2019 and 2025.

Cuba’s vice prime minister, Óscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga, grandnephew of Fidel Castro, told state TV that the government has introduced measures to diversify fuel imports and reduce demand at a crucial time for the tourist industry.

“The city is like a ghost town, and you don’t see any police,” Shayra Pernia, 39, told The Irish Times. “Before, we used to see police patrols in Havana. Now we don’t see them, we’re alone.”