MOSCOW, Russia.- The Association of Tour Operators of Russia reported this Friday an increase in the travels of Russians to Cuba during the first half of 2017, at a rate of 2.2 times more than last year.

According to the Office of the Ministry of Tourism of Cuba in Moscow, in the first six months Cuba welcomed 3 million of foreign tourists.

Sputnik News agency publishes this data and emphasizes that the increase in the tourist flow from Russia to Cuba is due to the ruble´s stabilization and the growth of air traffic, above all charter flights.

The Association of Tour Operators of Russia predicts that if the economic situation remains favorable, the number of Russian tourists in 2017 could recover the levels it had before the global crisis, and to emit to the Caribbean nation more than 70 thousand Russian travelers.