The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

High costs remain one of the greatest barriers to Andros fulfilling its untapped potential as a tourism destination, a Ministry of Tourism executive argued yesterday.

Peter Douglas, senior manager of the North Andros Tourist office, told the island's Business Outlook conference that its proximity to New Providence makes it a prime mass tourism destination for outback experiences.

"We should be one of the largest mass tourism destinations for outback experiences," he said. "We're not getting that. We're not getting the mass tourism out of Nassau because our ports are not ready. We're not taking advantage of the opportunities and the various models. We're worrying about hotels, but we're not looking at some of the spin-off opportunities," said Mr Douglas.

"One of our biggest hurdles is we are a very expensive destination. A visitor would say they could do two round-trip tickets from Miami to New York for what they pay to come here. That's why a lot of our tourism model is high-end.

"When you see a visitor come here, they come to spend money. They could go to Mexico, Costa Rica even Asia for one-third of what they pay to come here. Our competition is killing us with the price, the service and the choice of food. The only thing we hold over people is we are very friendly and fortunate to have an unspoiled environmen."

Mr Douglas added that the high-end tourist segment remains a key market for the island, although there remain many opportunities in eco-tourism and the vacation rental market.

He said: "Another challenge you have in Andros is connecting Andros. It was not until the 1960s that we got some of the bridges, but we will never feel the full power until we connect Mangrove Cay in south Andros to Central and North."