Meliá Hotels International informed Spain’s National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) on Tuesday that its Portuguese subsidiary, Ilha Bela Gestao e Turismo, will cease all its hotel management and marketing services in the Republic of Cuba as of July 24, 2026.
This decision completes the process that began on June 3 (when the company announced the immediate withdrawal of management and use of the brand in 15 initial establishments) and now marks the definitive cessation of operations in all its establishments in the country. The measure includes the complete cessation of the use of its licensed brands, its hospitality operations, and the local supply chain linked to its activities.
The group, based in the Balearic Islands, justifies this withdrawal by citing the “significant operational, legal, economic, and financial difficulties” that persistently affect the Cuban environment and which, the group notes, “make even a minimal level of operational stability impossible in practice and in law.”
Background: June 3
The measure announced today comes in light of the disclosure of “other relevant information” filed with the regulator on June 3, 2026. In that earlier announcement, Meliá had already notified the cancellation of contracts for an initial group of 15 hotels – including flagship properties such as the Gran Hotel Bristol Habana Vieja, the Paradisus Varadero, and the Sol Varadero Beach – as part of an ongoing risk assessment in the region.
In accordance with the accounting principle of prudence, the company is currently assessing the financial impact of this complete withdrawal from the Cuban market, including a possible write-down of the carrying value of its assets tied to the island. Meliá will provide details of the specific scope of this adjustment when it reports its results for the first half of fiscal year 2026.
Ilha Bela has also stated that it will continue to carry out the necessary procedures to ensure an orderly transition that minimizes the impact of the shutdown, while implementing transparent communication protocols with staff, suppliers, and customers.
A committed company
The Spanish chain, which at one point managed up to 34 hotels in Cuba with some 14,000 rooms, was until recently the island’s main foreign tourism operator. The decision announced today by the company comes after a first quarter that was severely affected on the island by the impact of regional geopolitical events.
According to the first-quarter financial report for the fiscal year, Meliá’s business in Cuba was “significantly affected” as a result of the U.S. intervention in the region earlier this year.
This situation caused sudden difficulties in obtaining fuel and the imposition of a strict trade blockade that severely affected the tourism sector, even leading to the mass cancellation of direct flights, including those from Canada, its main market, due to a shortage of jet fuel.
As a result of this complex situation, the hotel group was forced to begin a phased shutdown of its properties, operating at only 50% of its installed capacity by the end of March, which severely affected its operating metrics and foreshadowed the result announced on Tuesday.
