Is this DR related? I think so, as it has the possibility to decimate the DR tourist industry.
I hate to burst your bubble, but the DR is among the best prepared countries to deal with this, for several reasons among which includes:
1. Cuban tourism is already open to the entire world, except the U.S. Thus, the opening of Cuba is only affecting ONE source of tourists. The DR attracts tourists from a diverse range of countries. The DR is not Puerto Rico or Jamaica or the U.S. Virgin Islands, or even Aruba; islands with well over 90% of their tourist base consisting of American tourists. The DR is the most popular island for the French, the Italians, the Spaniards, the Canadians, etc.
2. Currently, Cuba only has X number of rooms/hotels available; most of which are mediocre by Dominican standards. Even if Cuba was able to suck dry the American tourists from all other islands, DR included; those Americans flocking to Cuba will, in effect, be displacing the millions of Canadians, Latin Americans, and Europeans that currently vacation there. As the competition for the rooms available in Cuba rises, so too will the cost of vacationing there. Now, given that most tourists currently vacationing in Cuba do so due to cost, and given that there are only so many hotel rooms in Cuba; they will need to go somewhere.
Hm, the DR with a new void will sure become appealing to them and with the DR already being an established mass market tourist destination for the very same nationalities that in Cuba will be displaced by the Americans; its only natural that the American void in the DR will be counterbalanced by the influx of more Canadians, Europeans, and Latin Americans looking for a bargain and a room in the Caribbean.
So, I'm sorry to burst your dooms day scenerio, but the islands in the Caribbean that will see a decimation in their tourist trade are those like the Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Aruba, and St. Lucia to name a few; that overwhelmingly depend on American tourists.
Islands like Martinique, British Virgin Islands, and St Martin are the best prepared because they depend almost entirely on the European market.
And then there is the DR, which depends more or less 50/50 on the U.S. and on the rest of the world and alas, its the only country equipped to receive the displaced tourists that opening Cuba to the Americans will create.
Sorry, Dominican tourist industry is not threatened by Cuba.
Heck, Florida has more reasons to worry about this than does the DR!
-NALs