For us it is a flag, a symbol that for 35 years the first mixed hotel that emerged in the country shows such relevant results and shows the cohesion, the fighting spirit, the commitment generated here, under its leadership, the core of the Party and trade union organization, said the member of the Political Bureau of the Party and General Secretary of the Worker’s Central Union of Cuba (CTC), Ulises Guilarte De Nacimiento.

Congratulating the three and a half decades since the inauguration of Sol Palmeras on May 10, 1990, Guilarte said that «here in Sol Palmeras an idea of Fidel Castro Ruz was realized, which has been successfully put into practice during all these years, in a sector defined as one of the most important strategic development programs of the country.

«This or any other idea will never be valid if it is not consistently demonstrated in practice with efficient results, and this is only possible with people like you, competent professionals with a high sense of commitment to the tasks they perform».

He reflected on the difficulties faced by this industry. «There are those who think that working in tourism is happiness and here too there are many limitations, shortcomings faced days to offer tourists the best possible quality in the provision of services».

Congratulations to the staff of the hotel, especially the 14 founders who “have remained faithful to Fidel’s idea, to the hotel’s policy of remaining a symbol of Cuban tourism, something that enhances the collective, the fruit of the first Cuban joint venture, in association with Meliá Hotels International,” he said.

Before handing over the seal of the 85th anniversary of the CTC to the Sol Palmeras group, Guilarte said with emotion that the award was a testimony of infinite gratitude, admiration and respect for those who have made tourism a reality on this island.

Created by the National Secretariat, the 85th anniversary seal of the CTC is awarded to labor collectives, workers, cultural, sports and scientific personalities, institutions, national and international trade union organizations.

«The collective is an example of dedication and altruism in its daily work, demonstrating that despite difficulties, creativity is the solution for our development,» reads the agreement supporting the award.

Men and women with more than 20 years of continuous work in this hotel were honored with the award of Elpidio Casimiro Sosa González, martyr of the sector, who went down in history for selling his place in the old Oriente Bar and donating these 300 pesos to the revolutionary cause.

Antonio Diaz, the hotel’s managing director from Spain, summarizes the importance of the hotel that heralded the arrival of foreign investment in Cuba. 35 years on, the hotel has recorded 11,000,000 nights, 2.5 million overnight stays, 250M€ in profits, 710M€ in sales.

«Today we are not only celebrating for you. We are also celebrating three and a half decades of Sol Meliá’s presence in Cuba, as today’s Meliá Hotels International used to be called. I assure you that none of these investors has ever regretted one of the company’s best decisions…».

Díaz made a special mention of Gabriel Escarrer Juliá, the late president of Meliá, who «left us a legacy of how to approach tourism, how to succeed and a desire to work that we must preserve.

He also referred to Fidel’s imprint to boost the leisure industry in a Cuba that should be proud of the results of a hotel that this year became a National Vanguard for the fifteenth time.

Special recognition was given to Argentinean Carlos Alberto Victoria, who returned to Sol Palmeras to repeat the experience of 35 years ago when he participated in the official inauguration of a facility where he has stayed more than 50 times.

A diploma was also awarded to Antonio «Toto» Pilegelli, the Italian-Canadian client with the absolute record of 103 stays at Sol Palmeras, a place where the percentage of repeat guests is very high, with 95,60, 40 times, a sign of the preference that this resort continues to enjoy.