EDITOR, The Tribune.
TOURISM - past experience with Ministry of Tourism giving accurate statistics is certainly questionable.
Cleverly, so they think by combining Cruise and Air (stay-over) arrivals the number looks great but in reality the facts say totally different.
This sort of thinking has to affect the planning and marketing of MOT so DG come clean and say it as it is.
For the past ten years, little if any increase in ‘stay-over visitors’ in fact the inventory of hotel rooms decreased cruise arrivals shot up but only 39%+- of them ever leave the ship in port.
As we move forward - incredibly Baha Mar, 2,300 rooms requires 80% occupancy which means they must have 1,840 rooms filled at least Thursday-Sunday, double occupancy 3,680 persons.
3,680 persons arriving by air = a whopping $920,000.00 a three-day stay in promotional support or $47.8m... Budget whipped out.
Why has the little Netherlands Antilles island of Aruba done so much better than The Bahamas? Now that is what DG Tourism should be looking at. Aruba is spotless - no crime - great shopping and US Pre-clearance. 16% increase last year, stay-over visitors.
Compare it to Nassau - Nassau dirty, litter everywhere - crime murder a day because all the bad boys are out on bail - shopping mediocre high priced - US Pre-clearance.
MARCIA SMITH
Nassau,
December 4, 2016.
Comments
goodbyebahamas 7 years, 4 months ago
I have been to Aruba 3 times, Cayman Islands 3 times, and the Big Island of Hawaii 1 time. I have a Bahamian friend who is the airport's control tower operator in Hawaii. He told me Hawaii is the best place he has ever lived in, in three more weeks I'm going to go visit him. Aruba was nice, but now there is litter not where the tourist are, but at the west end and the east end of the island. But get this, all the litter comes by sea from South American, every piece of litter said "Made in Venezuela". Cayman islands is beautiful, I saw no litter anywhere, but it's expensive as hell to live there. So I'm headed to Hawaii to see if my friend is right, when I was there five years ago is was amazing, no litter, people were nice and there was even snow on top of Mauna Kea mountain as a swam at Hapuna beach below with 80 degree weather; nothing like in the World. My friend told me there were less than 2 murders in a three year period where he lives on the Big island, how many are there in Bahamaland in one year? Until the crime is stopped in Bahamaland, the country will continue to fail beyond repair, and locals is all you will see, no tourist, or foreigners. It is a same, because Bahamaland has some of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen, but who cares about beaches when you have to look behind you every minute of the day. Get rid of the PLP who only care about self interest as they neglect the beautiful land God has blessed you with and it's warm hearted people. Three more weeks, I am so happy am going back to Hawaii, only heaven is paradise, but Hawaii sure comes close.
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