Letters to the Editor - NYTimes.com Regarding "Cuba Opens Up, Group by Group" (Sept. 15): Since United States laws prohibit American tourism in Cuba, I was surprised to see in the Travel section a full-page feature for Americans who want to visit Cuba. As The Times highlighted, several American tour companies are exploiting President Obama's "people-to-people" program to take American tourists to Cuba. Unfortunately, while going in-depth to detail the art, cigar-making and Latin dancing Americans might enjoy while visiting Cuba on one of these trips, The Times failed to make any mention of the ongoing human rights abuses being committed by the Cuban regime or how the regime benefits financially from American tourism. The Times also neglected to recognize that the Cuban regime does not allow the tour companies profiled to facilitate visits between Americans and brave members of Cuba's pro-democracy movement. Considering these grim realities, I urge both President Obama and The Times to more carefully review Cuban travel in the future. Marco Rubio Washington The writer is a Republican senator from Florida. It is almost 2014. When are we going to face reality and accept that allowing Cuban-Americans to freely visit Cuba, which is the current policy, and prohibiting the rest of us from visiting without some stupid tour group is blatant discrimination? The prohibition on Americans of all backgrounds to visit our neighbor to the south is insane. It hurts Americans and Cubans. The only ones who benefit are Cuban-American groups in Florida who do not represent anyone but their increasingly tiny community. Harold Goodman Silver Spring, Md. The first thing that strikes me is how expensive these tours are. Cuba is 100 miles from the United States, and the cost of living is low. United States government regulations have allowed a few approved tour operators to gain quasi-monopoly status and to push up their rates. Richard Galton Walnut Creek, Calif. For significant cost savings and a fabulous, insightful adventure, I suggest visiting Cuba with a licensed nonprofit agency like the Center for Global Justice (globaljusticecenter.org). Cuba is a complex country, full of natural beauty and a richly textured society in transition. Go now and discover it for yourself. Aysha Grifin San Miguel de Allende, Mexico