After 54 years of hostility between Cuba and the United States of America, the former opened an embassy in Washington, D.C. – the U.S. capital of course – on Monday July 20. For all those years, Americans were prevented from traveling to Cuba, although many did so using circuitous routes through such countries as neighboring Canada and Mexico, the Cayman Islands, The Bahamas and as far away as Spain. They were accommodated by the Cubans, who did not bother to put the Cuban immigration stamp in their passports.

Prior to Fidel Castro's takeover of his country in 1959, Cuba was America's playground in the Caribbean; especially for the rich and famous and, of course, those of the mob persuasion. And that is why the fear of Cuba again opening to American holiday seekers – eventually, but surely – has sent shudders and nightmares of severely impacted tourism industries throughout the Caribbean.

As if when all restrictions are eventually removed from Americans visiting Cuba, the great majority of them will head to Cuba to vacation. According to the World Travel Organization (WTO), 2014 saw 1.138 billion international tourist arrivals. That is, persons traveling to a country other than their own, on holiday.

Based upon a 4.5 percent average annual growth starting in 2010, short of any major catastrophes hitting the tourism industry, that trend is expected to continue for the foreseeable future. Along with the fact that everyone seeking a Caribbean vacation will not choose Cuba, is the reality that with in excess of a billion tourists annually, with more than 180 million to the Americas, there are sufficient for every Caribbean destination to get its share.

The key thing in promoting your destination is branding. It says who you are, and what you have to offer. That is what the vacationer is looking for, and what drives his/her decision where to vacation.

Every destination, including Cuba, has its own branding – or at least should have – and those one billion plus vacationers will each choose from among those brands the place they will visit; and they will certainly not all choose Cuba, or Jamaica, or Turks and Caicos, etc.

Instead, some will like what Cuba has to offer, some will like what Jamaica has to offer, and some, what Turks and Caicos has to offer. Each of those destinations has something special to offer, but everybody does not want to go to any one of those destinations. Our tastes and desires vary.

There are therefore, two main elements that counter the fear and perception that when Cuba opens, the rest of the Caribbean will close down. One, enhance and emphasize your branding, making it quite clear to the planning vacationer just what it is your destination has to offer that no other destination has; and two, get that word out. Yes, you enhance your branding, and you advertise it. Turks and Caicos, for example, is chosen for its excellent beaches, its great diving and sea sports, its state-of-the-art accommodations, and the ease of getting there – among other things.

It is therefore incumbent upon us to do all that is in our power to assure not only that the status quo regarding the above assets is at the least maintained, but also that whatever we need to do is done to further improve these very important assets. And then of course, we must advertise, advertise, advertise. Yes, we must make the world aware of what we have to offer.

Of note is what the Florida Keys, also concerned about the impact on their tourism industry of the opening of Cuba, are doing. The Keys Tourist Development Council has rolled out a marketing plan to be enacted in case the travel ban by the U.S. is totally lifted. Its tag line: "Two Nations, One Vacation", selling the Keys and Cuba as a joint destination.

Remember that even though ambassadors will have been exchanged between Cuba and the U.S., travel restrictions for the most part, will still remain. A formal end to the travel ban must be passed by the U.S. Congress and the likelihood of that happening in the near future seems quite remote.

Then, what about the individual that has never traveled abroad or perhaps traveled only to Europe or some other non-Caribbean destination, but through curiosity decides to vacation in Cuba, thereby getting a taste of the Caribbean?. The next time he or she goes on holiday, and assuming the Cuba vacation was an enjoyable one, there might very well be the desire to see more of the Caribbean.

Doing research for that trip, he or she would certainly see the promotions of other Caribbean destinations – with each of them promoting what they have to offer and telling why their destination is the one to visit and why they have already been chosen by thousands of vacationers. We must also remember that while there are restrictions on Americans visiting Cuba, for the rest of the world, there were never such restrictions. And also, as stated above, many Americans have already visited Cuba during the long embargo.

I say we should not be afraid of Cuba opening up to Americans, for there are more than enough tourists to go around. You just have to make them aware of who and where you are, and what it is that you have to offer that the other guys do not. They will come – take my word for it.

• John Skippings is a former director of tourism for the Turks and Caicos Tourist Board and marketing consultant with the Montserrat Tourist Board. This op-ed is published with permission from Caribbean News Now.