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There are British companies interested in building golf courses in Cuba.

Some 175,000 UK tourists travel to Cuba every year. The new British ambassador to Cuba hopes this figure to ramp up, thanks to a diversification of the island nation’s offerings, yet without neglecting the sun-and-beach product.

“We know there are companies in our country with over one billion pounds worth of investments ready to come to Cuba, and in golf courses alone, there are four firms.”

His Excellency Tim Cole, ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, arrived in Cuba quite recently, the first Spanish-speaking nation he’s been assigned to as a diplomat. He comes full of expectations and willing to contribute to ratchet up the number of British sunbathers coming to the Caribbean island.

As to what lures Britons to Cuba in terms of travel and tourism, Mr. Cole mentions Cuba’s spectacular beaches. Each year some 175,000 British visitors come down to Cuba, an average of 3,000 every week. Beaches are fantastic, but so are the culture, the ­scenery and the traditions, like cigars –a scarce commodity in our country. Cuba’s cultural ambience is evidently very intense, and so is in the UK. This is an area we could make some headway.

As far as the relations between both nations, Mr. Cole recalled they are based on the 2011 bilateral declaration that stresses on such issues as climate change, regional security, commerce and human rights, just to name but a few.

As far as trade relations are concerned, there are plans in the offing to step them up, hinging on sectors the UK is highly developed in, such as biotechnology, agriculture and renewable energy. Moreover, Mr. Cole says there are British companies interested in building golf courses in Cuba, a move that would help the island nation further branch out its tourism offerings.