C’bean still in demand for travel - Madden-Greig
Published:Tuesday | October 11, 2022 | 12:05 AMJanet Silvera/ - Senior Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Ahead of all other regions in the world in terms of recovery, tourism stakeholders say the Caribbean is shifting its attention to growth mode, and is looking to new source market South America to take it to the next level.
President of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA), Nicola Madden-Greig, who was speaking at a press briefing Tuesday at the start of Caribbean Travel Marketplace in San Juan Puerto Rico, presented statistics which showed the top 10 countries responsible for the latest growth spurt.They are the Dominican Republic, US Virgin Islands, Bonaire, Curacao, Martinique and Guadeloupe, followed by the Turks and Caicos Islands, Curacao, The Bahamas, Jamaica and Puerto Rico.
“For the majority of the countries listed, their numbers are showing double-digit growth, compared to (the) same period in 2019, a record year for tourism arrivals into the region. We are up 15 per cent, and still ahead of every other region in the world, but remain behind 2019 numbers when the Caribbean welcomed 32 million visitors,” the CHTA president, who is also a hotelier, told journalists.
And Madden-Greig was quick to point out that the numbers that the region is now reflecting are not borrowed visitors, because, while others have seen a decrease in their markets, the Caribbean has continued to grow.
“What we are seeing is that the Caribbean in particular is still very hot in demand and, definitely, we have managed to not only attract new visitors but to sustain that growth,” she explained. From the third quarter of 2022, the numbers are up two per cent, and in the fourth quarter, up 15 per cent over 2019.
She pointed out that the Caribbean is also gaining momentum against Central America, which has had a recovery rate of six per cent. Travellers from the Americas are driving this strong performance to the Caribbean, she asserted.
“We can see USA and Canada, which is 73 per cent of our markets, up 19 per cent, versus 2019. Latam and the Caribbean up 21 per cent and extra regionals still to recover at -10 per cent, but recovering as well.”Canada, one of the most popular source markets, remains in negative at -2 per cent, however, tourism stakeholders are optimistic and are convinced that the late opening of their borders is among the reasons for the stagnant growth.
Business travel is catching up with leisure and is above 2019 levels.
“A lot of corporate companies, especially multinationals, are just now starting to release their corporate persons for travel. What we are seeing is that it is freeing up and we look forward to first quarter where we expect that business travel and group travel, the MICE (Meetings and Incentives) market, is coming back also,” she assured.
Madden-Greig says, from all indications, this will help to boost the leisure travel, as most of this growth is being driven by the leisure market. “So, if we add business travel, which is rebounding, if we add the MICE and other speciality markets which will come back in 2024, it is just showing the absolute potential for that growth to the Caribbean,” she noted.
Premium cabin class is also on the recovery, pre-pandemic level premium is now up 27 per cent and economy up one per cent, which means a more affluent traveller is coming to the Caribbean.
According to the CHTA president, this really helps move the needle for all the countries.