CubaPLUS Magazine

Born out of a group of friends' passion for Cuba, the travel agency AzuuucA Travel has been operating on the island for just over a year, dedicated to selling this destination with offers tailored to the interests of those who wish to travel to the largest of the Antilles, explained Lyding Rodríguez, its representative in the country.

In an interview with CubaPLUS, the young executive spoke in detail about how they achieved the creation of the agency and explained: "We are a group of acquaintances, all passionate about Cuba. I was organizing trips a long time ago, and then, together with a group of these Cuba-loving people, we decided to create our own project.
This is how AzuuucA was born, from our passion for Cuba, from the desire to make it easier for travelers to come to Cuba and experience Cuba fully. "We create tailor-made trips. Based on the traveler's characteristics, which includes everything: desires, interests, budgets. We design a trip exactly as the client wants, and we accompany them from before the trip, throughout their trip, until the trip ends.

“We are their Cuban friend, let's say, their guardian angel in Cuba, so that everything runs smoothly,” he explained. Regarding the markets where they operate, he said, “Our clientele is essentially French-speaking and, to a minority, Spanish; not because we are closed to other markets, but because we have gained a little space there, meaning the majority comes from France, Belgium, Switzerland, and we would love to open up to other markets. “We have a team that speaks French, English, and, of course, Spanish.” He further explained that AzuuucA is the commercial brand of the Yes Travel agency, and "here we are a small team, a young company. There are four of us, and we have support in Europe, specifically in Switzerland, who help us with banking and other related procedures," he said. "In Cuba, we have service contracts with Cubanacan, a travel agency, and some collaborations with other agencies. Also with Cubanacan Hotels, as well as other hotel chains," he explained.

When answering the question: "Why sugar?" he expressed: "Azuuuca!" it always seemed to us, we used it among ourselves, it seemed like a very rhythmic word, sometimes used in songs. Celia Cruz (the late Cuban singer) used it in her songs, and others did too, and we jokingly, like many Cubans, whenever something is good or happens in the best way, we say it like this, "Azuuuca!" And it seemed resonant, Cuban..."

When giving our opinion on the future of Cuban tourism, I have considered that: "Certainly the situation is difficult, but we need people like us. We sell with passion, we sell charisma, smiles, kindness. We are a unique people. Cubans are charming, and the experience we have had with travelers is incredible, because the blackouts don't matter, the shortages don't matter. Tourists always leave with their eyes full of stars and wanting to return, because no matter the shortages we may have, the smile, the availability and the friendliness of the Cuban people make up for it, and Cuba will always be a charming destination,” he emphasized.

Regarding AzuuucA's participation in the recently concluded International Tourism Fair FITCuba 2025, I have considered it extremely useful for the agency he leads because “as we are a young agency, it has been a great experience because we have met with several hotel chains with which we will collaborate and establish contracts; in other words, we have built relationships and met, introduced ourselves, and have stayed in touch with several hotel chains to collaborate and sign contracts together.”

Among those contacts, he mentioned hotel groups Meliá, Iberostar, Islazul, among others, “but we have already established collaborations with chains such as Blue Diamond and Cubanacan Hotels,” he said. “As for other agencies and business groups,” he continued, “we met with several, and the groundwork has been laid for collaboration immediately after the fair.

This is the case with Amistur, Cuba Deporte, Paradiso, the asset management group, San Cristóbal, and we also had an exchange with Cubasol, which presented us with what they do.” "These meetings have opened up a range of possibilities and will allow us to offer clients and travelers a greater variety of products, options of all kinds, to suit all interests, whether cultural, sports, history, or sun and beach tourism.

So, AzuuucA's presence at the fair was truly great, very useful, and our travelers will benefit greatly from all the groundwork we laid there," he concluded. FITCuba 2025 concluded on the 3rd after four intense days of work, with the presence of 1,500 foreign professionals, including travel agencies and press, and approximately 2,573 national professionals, both state and private, and was considered a success by both the organizations.