Travel plans are getting quietly yanked out from under a lot of people right now. Sunwing Vacations Group announced Wednesday it will be cancelling all company operations in Cuba from June 20 through October 9.
The move hits not just Sunwing, but WestJet Vacations too—both brands are suspending all Cuba operations until October as the island deals with severe fuel shortages.
Sunwing Vacations and WestJet Vacations are suspending all operations in Cuba until October as the island grapples with severe fuel shortages, the company said, and the dates are pretty specific: all company operations in Cuba will be cancelled between June 20 and Oct.
9.
Cuba flights paused as fuel shortages bite
The cancellations include flight and holiday packages to popular Cuban resort destinations like Varadero and Cayo Coco. If you had been picturing a beach week, that’s not happening in that window—at least not through Sunwing Vacations Group.
For people who already booked a Sunwing or WestJet vacation to Cuba between now and Oct.
31, the company says they will be contacted about alternative options.
It’s not a “maybe later” situation; it’s more like an organized pivot, with staff likely moving customers toward other places instead of waiting for Cuba’s energy situation to ease.
The explanation the company gives ties directly back to the shortage itself.
With political pressure from the White House severing Cuba from its main fuel sources in Venezuela and Mexico, gasoline and diesel have become increasingly scarce in the island nation.
That, in turn, has led to nationwide blackouts and a growing energy crisis.
And because aviation fuel is also in short supply due to the de facto U.S.
blockade, the aviation squeeze doesn’t stop at the resorts—planes are affected too.
According to Misryoum reporting, major Canadian airlines including Air Canada, Air Transat and WestJet began suspending flights to Cuba in February.
With fewer tourists landing in Cuba, many of the country’s top destination are now largely deserted.
Even without seeing the numbers on a page, you can feel the pull of that reality—there’s a different kind of silence when travel dries up.
One small image sticks: on a street in Havana, a woman walks past piles of garbage on Friday, April 10, 2026—the kind of everyday scene that makes the broader crisis harder to ignore.
What happens after October
Sunwing’s statement leaves a roadmap, at least on paper.
Services to Varadero and Cayo Coco are scheduled to resume on Oct.
10, while services to other Cuban destinations like Holguin, Santa Clara, Cayo Largo and Cienfuegos will resume on Oct.
25.
So it’s not a full reset with no end date—it’s more of a staggered return.
In the meantime, Sunwing Vacations Group says it is still offering packages to other regional destinations.
“Sunwing Vacations Group continues to offer convenient flight options from key gateways across Canada to a wide range of popular sun destinations across Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America,” the company said.
“Starting in early May 2026, guests can enjoy seamless access to top vacation hotspots including Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos, Punta Cana, Montego Bay and more.”
Sunwing, meanwhile, is connected to WestJet in a way that makes the pause feel even more coordinated.
Sunwing became a subsidiary of WestJet in 2023 prior to a 2025 merger.
So even if the brands sound separate in everyday speech, the decision-making world behind them is… probably not wildly different.
And still, the question people will ask is simple: will it be stable by October?
The company is acting like yes—Varadero and Cayo Coco restart on Oct.
10, other destinations on Oct.
25—but with fuel shortages tied to larger pressures, you can’t say for sure.
For now, the bookings that would have gone to Cuba are being rerouted, and for some travelers, that reroute might be the only thing they can control.
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