Will Atlantic bubble expand to Cuba this winter?

Extending Atlantic bubble to Cuba? Halifax travel agency planning to offer direct flights for sunseekers this winter. Nick Moore reports.

HALIFAX — There is a plan to expand the Atlantic bubble -- all the way to Cuba.

A Halifax-based travel agency is planning to offer direct flights to Cuba this winter for Atlantic Canadians only.

Throughout the month of October, a Halifax-based travel agent has been promoting the idea.

Over the weekend, a social media post from Elayne Pink --- the co-owner of Absolute Travel -- said the plan was for an Air Canada charter flight to fly between Halifax and Cuba with the dates of Feb. 12 and March 19 given.

Once in Cuba, travellers would stay at a resort where only people from Atlantic Canada would be allowed to stay.

Pink said she was too busy for an interview on Monday because she's been overwhelmed by the reaction her pitch has been getting.

"I think it's a very innovative idea," said Lorn Sheehan, a professor at Dalhousie University who specializes in tourism and travel. "If somebody can create a trip, a travel product like this, that adheres to our health guidelines in the relevant provinces and countries in this case, then that's great. It's a wonderful thing to be able to get people into our airlines again in a safe way."

People on the streets of Halifax say it's a good idea and would be a welcome break.

Nova Scotia's chief medical officer of health, Dr. Robert Strang, said he had no comment, and referred all questions to the federal government -- citing it as an issue of international travel.

The Public Health Agency of Canada would not directly answer CTV News's questions about the potential Cuba trip, only mentioning the requirement that anybody leaving Canada would be subject to a 14-day quarantine upon their return.

"It will be a very interesting test of our government's willingness to allow the industry to explore some options," Sheehan said.

It's an option that many in Atlantic Canada are keeping an eye on for 2021.

Cuba relaxed coronavirus restrictions earlier this month in hopes of boosting its economy, allowing shops and government offices to reopen and welcoming locals and tourists at airports across the island, except in Havana.

Face masks and social distancing remain mandatory.