Sunwing Vacations Group cancels Cuba operations until October 9

This story was updated on Wednesday, April 15 at 2:20 p.m. EST

Following a review of its summer program, Sunwing Vacations Group, which includes Sunwing Vacations, WestJet Vacations and Vacances WestJet Quebec, will extend the pause of operations to Cuba for the 2026 summer season to include Varadero (VRA) and Cayo Coco (CCC). 

At this time, all operations in Cuba have been cancelled from June 20, 2026, through October 9, 2026 (inclusive) for all gateways/airports, the company wrote in a press release Wednesday (April 15).

Sunwing Vacations Group noted that it continues to offer flight options from key gateways across Canada to a wide range of popular sun destinations across Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America

Starting in early May 2026, guests can access top vacation hotspots including Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos, Punta Cana, Montego Bay and more.

Services to Varadero (VRA) and Cayo Coco (CCC) will resume as scheduled on October 10, 2026, the company noted. 

Service to Holguin (HOG), Santa Clara (SNU), Cayo Largo (CYO) and Cienfuegos (CFG) will also resume on October 25, 2026.

Customers with upcoming vacations to Cuba

All impacted bookings will be contacted through regular ARCC notifications with available options.

"We will continue to closely monitor the situation and will provide you with further updates as they become available. We appreciate your patience and understanding," the company said.

Air Transat temporarily halts sales

Air Transat is also reviewing its summer Cuba flight schedule amid an ongoing fuel shortage on the island and heightened geopolitical uncertainty. 

As PAX reported on April 15, the airline said it will decide in the coming weeks when it will officially resume service to the island.

In the meantime, the airline says flights to Cuba scheduled between mid-June and the end of October 2026 will remain temporarily closed for sale.

“We are closely monitoring the situation and will communicate updates once a decision has been reached. If need be, clients holding a reservation will be contacted directly to inform them of the options available to them,” Air Transat wrote PAX in an email on Tuesday (April 14). “We thank our clients for their understanding.”

Air Canada, meanwhile, has pushed back the return of its Cuba service until November 1, 2026, citing ongoing operational issues including power outages and hotel closures on the island.

At the same time, Flair Airlines was recently given a green light by the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) to operate Cuba flights.  

No official launch dates or flight schedules have been released by Flair just yet.

Energy crisis in Cuba

Cuba is grappling with a severe energy crisis after disruptions in Venezuelan oil supplies, fronted by the United States, left the country’s airports short of jet fuel, prompting Canadian airlines to suspend service in February.

The Government of Canada is currently warning citizens against all non-essential travel to Cuba, pointing to deepening shortages of fuel, electricity, food, water, and medicine.

Still, some tour operators, such as Enjoy Travel Group and Hola Sun Holidays, have continued to promote the island nation.

Hola Sun’s main connections to Cuba currently include flights via the United States (American Airlines, Southwest, and Delta Air Lines), Mexico City and Cancun (Aeroméxico, Viva Aerobus, and Magnicharter) and Panama (Copa Airlines).

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