Caribbean Times 2nd Issue - Tuesday 27th September 2016

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8 c a r i b b e a n t i m e s . a g Tuesday 27th September 2016 New European cruise lines to call in Antigua following attendance at Seatrade The joint Caribbean Village of some 13 Caribbean Islands added flair and excitement to Seatrade Europe, the Largest Cruise Convention in Europe held in Tenerife from September 21-23. Antigua and Barbuda Tourism officials participated in a series of successful negotiation meetings with cruise line officials in their ongoing efforts to secure additional cruse business for the destination. Antigua and Barbuda’s cruise tourism officials continued to make the case of why the destination is strategically placed to be included in the various itineraries of the World’s #1 cruising region. Each cruise line was given a detailed presentation of the new developments to the pier and the planned upgrade that will take place for the city of St. John to return Antigua and Barbuda to its marquee status as a must-visit destination on their itineraries. The destination continues to remain high on the agenda of the European cruise lines due to the appeal that it has, and the wide offering of tours and excursions, which are high on the checklist of prospective cruise passengers. The three-member team made up of CEO of the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority - Colin C. James, Nathan Dundas - President of the Antigua and Barbuda Cruise Association, and Rohan Hector - Chairman of the St John’s Development Corporation were successful in their efforts, with several noticeable achievements. COLUMBIA Cruise Services Ltd. (CCS) who presently call at port St. John’s with the Thompson Dream and the Thompson Celebration, will now add as of this season, the Thompson Discovery. This new ship will make its inaugural call on November 9 and will continue to call until April 2017, visiting every other week for the season with 1,800 additional passengers. Discussions with CCS were also held Antigua and Barbuda’s delegation engaged in discussions with cruise line representatives during Seatrade Europe. surrounding the start of their ‘Scenic Cruise’ product, which will be ready for the next season. This is a smaller high-end service now operating only in Europe, offering river cruises. CCS is upgrading their vessels to provide ocean-going cruises and will position Antigua and Barbuda in the itinerary due to the positive feedback on the destination received from their passengers. Another first for the destination is the inaugural call of Viking Cruise Lines. This is their first foray into the Caribbean and Antigua is included on the itinerary. Nicolai SkogLand, Port Operations Manager for Viking Cruises, confirmed October 20 for the first inaugural call with 13 calls this season each bringing a total of 900 passengers until the end of February 2017. Traditionally a European River cruise line, this is their first foray in the Caribbean with a 10 day itinerary out of San Juan. Viking Cruises is a great fit for the destination as they remain one of the highest rated lines by Cruise Credits due to the first class experience offered to its passengers. Other inaugural calls for this upcoming season include the MSC Armonia on November 17 with 2,679 passengers and the Carnival Vista making its inaugural call on November 13 with approximately 5,000 passengers. After an absence of several years Pullmantur will return to Antigua for the upcoming season. The Zenith will be calling for the first time on December 20 with 1,800 passengers. The vessel will be partially homeporting allowing for passengers to fly into Antigua and board the ship. The ship returns for a total of 19 calls with one each week for the upcoming season. This cruise line, has in the past built a strong reputation of heavily utilizing the many tours and excursions whenever it visits Antigua and Barbuda. In other meetings, discussions were held with Steve Young, Director of Port Services and Government Affairs for P&O Cruise Lines, now under the Carnival UK Cruise brand. P&O indicated their interest in future homeporting opportunities from Antigua and their willingness to progress with follow-up meetings. The planned upgrade to the cruise facilities along with the amenities and first-class experience at the country’s new international airport were key to their interest as to why the destination is being considered. The move to target more European cruise lines is strategic, as the destination sets its sights on making greater inroads into the European cruise business; seeking to diversify the business and increase its market-share from the ever growing European business. By the additional business being secured, the European cruise lines continue to clearly endorse the country’s efforts in improving its infrastructure, where they see Antigua and Barbuda as joint partners that support their business with win-win solutions, while providing innovative and exciting experiences for their guests. Seatrade Europe 2016 again presented Antigua and Barbuda with a unique opportunity to negotiate and network with its valued European cruise partners. The efforts have again yielded more cruise business to all local cruise tourism stakeholders as they prepare for the upcoming winter season.
Tuesday 27th September 2016 c a r i b b e a n t i m e s . a g 9 Minister of Tourism, Hon. Asot A. Michael World Tourism Day Remarks A pleasant Good Morning, to the nation of Antigua and Barbuda. Today, we’re celebrating World Tourism Day. Founded by the World Tourism Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations, the day is geared to foster awareness among the international community of the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic value. September 27 th is the day is set aside on the United Nations Calendar each year in celebration, and to mark our efforts – to highlight tourism’s potential to contribute to our Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to address some of the most pressing issues facing the tourism industry today. Globally, Tourism accounts for 9.8% of the GDP – US$7.2 trillion, the travel & tourism sector employs 7 times more people than the automotive industry, and represents 1 in 11 jobs – 284 million people employed in the industry. For the fifth consecutive year, the outlook for Travel & Tourism in 2016 remains robust, despite economic fragilities and other sources of volatility in the wider market. The GDP’s growth contribution is expected to accelerate and again outpace growth of the wider economy. Stronger growth in 2016 is likely to be underpinned by an improving global economy, the lowest oil prices in more than a decade, and overall household finances and disposable income will benefit from reduced energy costs. Saying this, in the last year, safety and security concerns have moved into the spotlight, with recent incidences in Europe and we have to assume that these issues will continue to cause individuals concern. Thankfully, Antigua and Barbuda has an incredibly strong safety record. In fact we have made the decision to emphasize this strong selling point and so we will ensure that we consistently share this message with potential visitors. We are actively working to ensure that this standard is maintained so our visitors can feel safe when traveling to and spending their vacations in Antigua and Barbuda. Other factors influencing the flow of travelers around the world include the strength of the US dollar relative to other currencies and the shifting price of competitiveness of destinations. This is of course the viewpoint on a global level. Drilling down to the Caribbean, the total contribution of the travel & tourism sector to the regions GDP in 2015 was US$53.1 billion, and is forecast to rise by 2.7% in 2016. It supported 13.3% of total employment (2,255,000 jobs) and is expected to rise by almost 1% this year to 2,276,000 jobs. Of the 12 regions in the world, the Caribbean ranked the highest as having the travel and tourism sector contribute to the GDP based on relative size. Essentially: the Caribbean is the region most reliant on travel and tourism to building the economy in the entire world. For us at home Tourism continues to be the most critical industry underpinning our local economy. For Antigua and Barbuda, travel and tourism contributed to 57.1% of the GDP in 2015 and is forecast to rise by 3.5% in 2016. In regards to employment, 51.6% of total employment – 18,500 jobs – were directly and indirectly supported by the industry. This is expected to rise to 18,500 jobs this year. I share these figures with you so that everyone can truly understand the importance of the travel and tourism industry in Antigua and Barbuda. We aren’t speaking in platitudes and nebulous agendas. Travel and tourism is the lifeblood of the economy of Antigua and Barbuda, and Tourism Minister, the Hon., Asot Michael therefore the future and growth of our wonderful country relies on the success of travel and tourism. The charge that I constantly give to every member of the teams in the Ministry of Tourism and The Tourism Authority is that peoples’ hopes, dreams, livelihood and future are directly related to their work. Their jobs are making a difference for people’s lives. The good news is that 2016 has been a strong year for tourism, as we have seen double-digit growth in visitor arrivals. Even better news is that not only are we increasing our visitor arrivals, the visitors are also spending more money while on-island. Data from the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank shows that visitors spent around 40 million EC dollars more in Antigua and Barbuda for the first three months of this year (so January through March) over the same time period, with just over 314 million EC being spent. We expect that this increase in spend which is directly linked to visitor air arrivals will be reflected throughout the rest of the year, hopefully exceeding projected growth. In addition, we have been fortunate to announce the start of multiple new tourism construction projects, including re-opening Ocean Point for the incredibly popular Eden Viaggi/Alitalia charter and re-opening of Pineapple Beach Club next month with renovations and rebrand as an adults only resort. The Hodges Bay Resort and Spa is set to open in March of next year – meaning we’ll have an entirely new high-end property with one-bedroom suites, villas, and townhouses to cont’d on pg 10
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Caribbean Times 2nd Issue - Tuesday 27th September 2016

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