The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The Ministry of Tourism is hoping this week’s inaugural Bahamas Yacht and Travel Show will change industry perceptions of this nation, and continue the market’s growth by “leaps and bounds”.

Earl Miller, the Ministry’s general manager of maritime, told Tribune Business that the first-ever show, held this past weekend, is expected to be the foundation for a bigger annual event.

He added that an “aggressive” programme is in place to pursue the mega yacht category.

“This is the foundation for a bigger show annually to come to the islands of the Bahamas,” he said. “I thought that we would start small and roll out phase two in 2017, where you will see more brokers from the US and Europe.

“We are finding that most mega yacht captains are afraid to come to the Bahamas, citing that the water is too shallow and they don’t want to take the chance with a $20 million yacht.

“We are trying to dispel that myth. You can come to the Bahamas. You may not be able to pull up to every marina, but you can anchor out, which is what most do anyway, and tender in.”

Mr Miller said the spending generated by a mega yacht from just a one-weekend stay in the Bahamas could be as much as $50,000.

“The yachting, boating industry is growing by leaps and bounds right now,” he said. “Most of the high-end properties or developments coming in the islands want a marina for the mere fact that these boats are getting bigger and bigger, and they have to go somewhere.

“In Florida, which is the boating capital next door, right now there is sort of a moratorium on building marinas. We just need to let people know what we have, get our amenities in order and get our navigational system in place. We are working on this as we speak,” added Mr Miller.

“A cruise ship coming in may bring 4,000-5000 people, and you may see some of them walking around.One of these yachts averages 12 people, and while you may not see them, the spend of these boats just for a weekend could be $50,000. The charter is over $250,000. The impact is tremendous; you’re talking in the millions of dollars.

“In the near future, with the programme we have in place, being overly aggressive in going after this market you will see more of these vessels coming to this market.”

The Ministry of Tourism and “Boat 4 A Day” partnered to host the three-day Bahamas Yacht and Travel Show .