Cuba in a Time of Nostalgia: Memory, Utopia, and the Commodification of the Past
Keywords:
Cuba, Tourism, Nostalgia, Tourism of memory, RevolutionAbstract
This text analyzes the reconfiguration of tourism in Cuba since the 1990s, when the island, in a post-Soviet crisis, invested in the sector as an economic engine. It argues that the current tourism offering commodifies the past by combining Caribbean exoticism, icons of the Revolution, and a "vintage capitalism," fueling a nostalgic memory with utopian overtones. It discusses how this arrangement tensions socialist ideals and market logic, highlighting the "Janusian character" of tourism. In light of theoretical debates (Boorstin, Augé, MacCannell, Urry), it differentiates the Cuban case from Red Tourism and Eastern European post-socialism, emphasizing its still-present socialist status.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Silvana Hooper
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