Cuba aims for 2.5 million tourists in 2005.Cuba hopes to attract 2.5 million visitors this year, says Oscar Gonzalez, the country's deputy tourism minister. Gonzalez, attending a world tourism conference in Madrid, told reporters that Cuba's travel industry has leapfrogged ahead of the rest of the Americas in the past 12 years, jumping from No. 23 among the most sought-after travel destinations in the Western Hemisphere Western Hemisphere Part of Earth comprising North and South America and the surrounding waters. Longitudes 20° W and 160° E are often considered its boundaries. in 1990 to No. 8 in 2004. In 1990, Cuba attracted only 340,000 foreign visitors, a figure that shot up to 2,048,578 vacationers last year, snaring 11% of the total amount of Caribbean-bound travelers. Gonzalez indicated that 20 million tourists will visit the Caribbean in 2005, with Cuba grabbing 2.5 million of the total for a blistering 12% growth. By 2010, Cuba could be receiving 3-4 million tourists a year--even with the U.S. travel ban still in place. Cuba's largest source of tourism remains Canada (nearly 500,000 tourists last year), followed by Italy, Great Britain Great Britain, officially United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, constitutional monarchy (2005 est. pop. 60,441,000), 94,226 sq mi (244,044 sq km), on the British Isles, off W Europe. The country is often referred to simply as Britain. and Spain. At the moment, Cuba has 41,200 rooms in 278 hotels; around 70% of all lodgings are in four- and five-star establishments. The island's fastest-growing destinations are Camaguey, the northern keys, Santiago de Cuba Santiago de Cuba (säntyä`gō thā k  `bä), city (1994 est. pop. 385,800), capital of Santiago de Cuba prov., SE Cuba. , southeastern Cuba, the central coast of
Cienfuegos and Trinidad, Havana, Varadero, Cayo Largo del Sur Cayo Largo del Sur, also known simply as Cayo Largo, is a small resort island belonging to Cuba, in the Caribbean Sea no more than 25 kilometers (15.5 miles) long and 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) wide. It is the second-biggest island in Cuba's Canarreos Archipelago. and
Jardines del Rey Jardines del Rey (Spanish: Gardens of the King) is an archipelago located off the northern coast of the island of Cuba, in the northern parts of the provinces of Ciego de Ávila Province and Camagüey. .
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