Starwood Is First U.S. Hotel Chain to Receive Authorization to Operate in Cuba

Tonight, Stamford, Connecticut-based Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, became the first U.S.-based hotel company to enter Cuba in nearly 60 years, just one day after accepting a rival takeover bid from China's Anbang Insurance Group for $13.2 billion in cash over Marriott International's $12.2 billion bid from November 2015. Having received authorization from the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control and Cuban government officials, Starwood will eventually have a total of three hotels in Cuba. The company signed agreements with long-time Havana icon, Hotel Inglaterra, which is joining Starwood's The Luxury Collection of independent properties, and Hotel Quinta Avenida, which will be flagged as a Four Points by Sheraton. Both hotels will undergo renovations before raising their new brand flags later this year. Starwood also signed a Letter of Intent to convert the Hotel Santa Isabel into a member of The Luxury Collection. "We are very excited to be the very first U.S.-based hotel company to enter Cuba," Starwood CEO Thomas B. Mangas told Skift, shortly before the signing took place in Havana between Cuban government officials and members of Starwood's legal counsel, as well as Jorge Giannattasio, Starwood's senior vice president and chief of Latin America operations. For Starwood, this is a huge achievement, and a sign of its reputation as a global hospitality leader with hotels in more than 100 countries around the world. "We think this is an example of our tremendous ability to build a great hotel business in all countries of the world," Mangas said. "We are a partner that can be counted on to bring great global hotel expertise to the market. [It shows] our ability to work effectively across governments, and bring brands that consumers and owners like. This is one of a series of us showing how we can be innovative and move quickly and effectively as a partner to build hotels and brands across the globe." Cuba: Coveted Among U.S. Travel Companies To say that Cuba has been sought after by U.S.-based hotel companies for many years is a bit of an understatement. During the more-than-50-year-long Cold