The federal government has further updated its travel advisory for Cuba, telling Canadians to avoid all non-essential travel to the island country amid fuel shortages and a pull-back of flight service by Canadian airlines.
“Check your flight and avoid extending your stay,” it said in a travel advisory that was updated Wednesday.
Canada’s major airlines have all suspended service to Cuba, with Air Transat announcing Monday evening it was joining Air Canada and WestJet in cancelling all flights, as the Caribbean island’s major airport warns it will run out of jet fuel.
All three airlines said they had plans to bring travellers home to Canada.
Air Canada said it would fly empty planes to pick up approximately 3,000 customers already in Cuba and return them home in the days ahead, the airline said Monday in a statement.
- Are you considering changing your travel plans to Cuba? We want to hear from you. Send an email to [email protected].
“Air Canada took the decision following advisories issued by governments (NOTAMs) regarding the unreliability of the aviation fuel supply at Cuban airports,” the statement reads.
“For remaining flights, Air Canada will tanker in extra fuel and make technical stops as necessary to refuel on the return journey if necessary.”
Air Canada announced that seasonal flights to Holguín and Santa Clara are cancelled for the rest of the season, and that flights to Varadero and Cayo Coco are schedule to operate year-round but are currently suspended “with a tentative restart, pending review, on May 1.”
In an email to CBC News, WestJet said it would wind down winter operations to Cuba as of Monday, with plans to resume service to the island April 26. In a later statement, it confirmed the decision would also include Sunwing Vacations, WestJet Vacations and Vacances WestJet Quebec.
WestJet said it was also sending empty aircraft to Cuba starting Monday to ensure the safe return of guests currently vacationing in Cuba.
“All aircraft dispatched to Cuba will carry sufficient fuel to safely depart without reliance on local fuel availability,” it said.
In an official notice called a NOTAM posted to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) website Sunday, Havana’s José Martí International Airport warns “Jet A1 fuel not available” as of Tuesday, with the warning running until March 11.
A NOTAM, or “notice to airmen,” is an official notice containing information essential to personnel concerned with flight operations, according to the FAA. The NOTAM for the Havana airport is classified as “international,” meaning it is meant to be viewed by multiple countries.
Air Canada says it will suspend flights to Cuba and run empty flights to pick up customers already on the island to bring them home. The island’s main airport in Havana has warned it will run out of jet fuel. Cuba has not received crude or refined oil products from its top ally, Venezuela, since the U.S. moved to block the South American country’s exports.
This comes days after Canada’s federal government had issued an earlier travel advisory for Cuba, warning that an ongoing shortage of fuel could affect resorts and flights.
Cuba has historically relied on Venezuela to provide much of its jet fuel, as Reuters points out, but the Caribbean island country has not received any crude or refined products from its top ally since mid-December, when the U.S. moved to block the South American country’s exports.
The NOTAM not only suggests that the U.S. is attempting to cut off energy and fuel from reaching Cuba, but that the U.S. is also trying to isolate Cuba from the rest of the world, Tamanisha John, an assistant politics professor at York University who studies Caribbean development, told CBC News.
“It is no secret that Cuba relies on humanitarian aid and tourism, which reach the country predominantly by airplanes,” John said.
Airlines offer options
By Monday, Air Canada, WestJet, Air Transat and Sunwing all announced flexible rebooking or cancellation options. Air Canada said in its news release that any customers with affected flights will automatically receive a full refund. Air Canada Vacations, the tour operating arm of the airline, is also introducing a refund policy for those with scheduled departures.
WestJet posted an advisory Sunday offering options for all flights to and from Cuba from Sunday to Feb. 26, 2026.
While Air Transat initially said its flights would operate as scheduled, it reversed course Monday evening, saying it was suspending service until April 30. The airline said bookings to Cuba between Wednesday and the end of April would be automatically cancelled and refunded.
“We are currently organizing a return plan to Canada, which includes regular flights as well as additional repatriation flights,” it said in a notice on its website.
In addition, Transat noted that several resorts in Cuba had been shut down temporarily “due to low occupancy rates,” and is allowing affected customers to change the date, hotel, or destination of their trip without penalty.
Tryp Cayo Coco and Sol Cayo Santa Maria, for instance, both say they’re closed until November, according to their booking websites.
The Cuban Aviation Corporation published a short statement on Monday morning, just hours after the NOTAM was issued, but made no mention of the fuel shortage or flight cancellations.
“We continue working tirelessly to ensure the safety, fluidity and order of the airspace, supporting airline operations and ensuring that aviation in Cuba maintains the levels of reliability that characterize us,” noted the statement, which was posted to Facebook.
WATCH | What to know about the Cuba travel alert:
The federal government has upgraded its travel advice for Cuba, warning Canadians planning a vacation to the island of worsening shortages of fuel and food. McKenzie MacMillan, a managing partner at The Travel Group, says he wasn’t surprised to hear about the alert.
Trips cancelled
In its statement, Air Canada noted it operates about 16 weekly flights to Cuba out of Toronto and Montreal.
On Monday afternoon, the website for Toronto’s Pearson International Airport showed a cancelled Air Canada flight to Cayo Coco, but a WestJet flight was still scheduled.
For Tuesday, two Air Canada flights to Cuba were listed as cancelled.
Montreal-Trudeau International Airport posted a notice Monday that some carriers have suspended or modified flights “due to an aviation fuel shortage in Cuba.”
Kim Darby of Burlington, Ont., told CBC News Air Canada cancelled his upcoming flight to Cayo Santa Maria. It would have been his seventh trip to Cuba, where Darby enjoys fishing for bonefish on the flats.
“The beaches are great, and the people are great. I don’t need fancy food,” Darby, 71, told CBC News
Darby says he booked his two-week trip on Dec. 23. He and his wife were meant to leave March 27. On Thursday, Air Canada Vacations sent Darby an email that their flight was cancelled, without providing a specific reason.
CBC News has viewed the email. In travel forums, other Air Canada customers have said the company cancelled their Cuba trips, too.
Darby says they rebooked their vacation in Negril, Jamaica, without penalty, although they have to pay the difference, since Negril is more expensive.
“There’s virtually no fishing there, but we’ll have a nice relaxing two weeks,” he said.
While Darby and his wife were disappointed about their Santa Maria trip, he added they also didn’t want Cuba prioritizing its limited resources for resorts.
“If there are fuel shortages and food, it should go to the people. Tourists can go elsewhere.”
But John, the Caribbean development expert, said the Cuban government is very efficient at rationing and utilizing the supplies that it does have, and added she doesn’t think Canadians should avoid travelling there.
“Canadians traveling to Cuba might find themselves staying in better accommodations as the Cuban government prioritizes keeping its best tourist facilities operational,” she said.
And she noted that planes can still refuel at other airports in the Caribbean. Air France, for instance, told AFP News it would be making other stops in the Caribbean to refuel.
And Air Europa will make a refuelling stop at Santo Domingo Airport in the Dominican Republic as part of its service between Madrid and Havana starting on Tuesday, according to Reuters.
