Above: Cuba (Photo: Cuba Travel Services)

By Dana Niland
CJ Contributor

The American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) is joining as a founder member of a new organization called Engage Cuba, the group said in a statement.

The group is airing ads on major networks including CNBC, MSNBC, and Fox News to boost support for overturning the 54-year-old restriction on American travel to Cuba.

This effort comes as part of a larger initiative to generate support from American businesses and non-profits to improve US trade and travel restrictions with Cuba.

“ASTA has long believed that Americans ought to be allowed to travel across the globe without restriction, allowing them to act as ambassadors of freedom and American values abroad, and our work with Engage Cuba will bring that goal within reach,” said Zane Kerby, president and CEO of the ASTA.

Other members of the Engage Cuba coalition include the National Foreign Trade Council, National Association of Manufacturers, the Consumer Electronics Association, and the Council of the Americas.

They are joined in the effort by Proctor & Gamble, Cargill, Choice Hotels, and the Havana Group representing the private sector.

Travel by Americans to Cuba is currently restricted to one of 12 categories of licensed travel, from people-to-people tours to educational trips.