ANDRE BAGOO Thursday, May 29 2008

WITH rising oil prices forcing a reduction in the number of flights to the region and the US-led global slowdown punch a hole in spending, tourism planners will be forced to compete or perish in a slicker, more cutthroat market.

And, despite its steady growth, the region is losing market share to more competitive tourism markets such as Asia and Europe.

Add climate change to the mix, which could actually destroy the physical landscape tourists enjoy, and the local industry could find itself on the ropes.

Industry experts say there is one untapped resource that the Caribbean can utilise to stem the tide of declining market share: Niche marketing to Caribbean communities across the globe.

From tourism cross-border investments to increasing demand for regional tourism by marketing on Caribbean internet sites and tapping into faith tourism, the ideas mooted at the recently concluded 12th Annual Caribbean Media Exchange (CMEx) Symposium on Sustainable Tourism in San Juan, Puerto Rico, forced planners to rethink their strategy.

The set theme of the symposium from May 15 - 19 was, “Embracing the Diaspora: Connecting Communities.”.

Terestella Denton, executive director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company, called for a plan for the region to deal with the challenges ahead, stressing this might include a drive to niche-market the region to Caribbean emigrants abroad, luring them back to the region as tourists.

“There’s gold in them there hills,” assured Irwin Clare, the Managing Director of the Jamaica-based Caribbean Immigrant Services, Inc. He said the potential economic contribution of Caribbean descendants now living abroad is being masked by the fact that there is little data on their activities.

For instance, in the American census exercise, no category for Caribbeans is included. Instead, there is the catch-all category of black.

Business consultant Dr Carlisle Boyce called for a special unit in Caricom to address the development of linkages to the diaspora.

Raul Lopez, President of Phoenix Multicultural, a marketing firm, noted that by 2020, more than half of travellers worldwide will be non-white.

Building on this point, Michael Deflorimonte, an emerging markets consultant, noted that the African American market in the US is poised to become a major player in the tourism market.

He pointed out that the internet could be a crucial way of reaching this market, with 52 per cent of African Americans browsing the net for business purposes as opposed to 28 per cent of the general American population.

WASTED OPPORTUNITIES According to Senator Allen Chastanet, the chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organisation, the Caribbean has wasted too many opportunities in the past.

“I’m here today to say the debate must stop. I believe in the next two years there will be things taking place in this world that we’ll long for the days we let pass,” Chastanet told the more than 100 delegates from the media, tourism industry sector gathered at the Holiday Inn, Isla Verde.

“Times are changing and unfortunately the world economic situation as it is, with oil prices climbing, will have significant implications for this region in the next six to eight months and we don’t have time to waste.” Chastanet, who is also St Lucia’s Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation, warned that American carriers are set to cut flights into the region by 20 per cent because of escalating fuel costs.

In fact, this week American Airlines confirmed that it was considering reducing flights on some Caribbean routes, as part of measures to cut soaring costs. Chairman and CEO Gerard Arpey also said that flights from New York and Miami to some (as yet unidentified) Caribbean destinations are likely to be considered for the chop.

The news casts a cloud over the tourism industry, already expected to be hit by the effects of the American presidential elections.

“It is always in an election year that business drops in the fourth quarter anywhere between 20 to 30 per cent,” Chastanet noted. While the world tourism industry grew by nearly seven per cent in 2007, this region grew by only two per cent, while market share dwindled from four and a half percent to two and a half percent.

“It can be pretty dramatic what’s going to happen in the fourth quarter,” Chastanet warned, saying the industry was in crisis.

He revealed that all tourism ministers in the region will meet on today in Antigua as well as on June 24 in Washington, leading up to the Caricom summit in July, where one day has been set aside to deal with the tourism issue and where a proposal for a US$188M marketing blitz is also carded for discussion.

FAITH TOURISM Apart from niche marketing, the region must try and capitalise on an emerging trend in the tourism market: Faith tourism. According to Kevin J Wright, of the World Travel Association (WTA), faith tourism is booming. “One in three Americans are interested in faith vacations,” he noted.

So that the Caribbean with its connections to the diaspora as well as its wealth of religious festivals and culture could position itself to explore these marketing avenues.

According to Nicole Du Boulet, the Public Affairs Manager of the Tourism Development Company (TDC), this country has focused on niche marketing although it was a relative newcomer to the tourism market.

“Trinidad and Tobago is not the sun, sea and sand tourism destination. We have instead focused on niche tourism.

We are unique because of our diversity in so many facets — culture, food, heritage — which makes us a unique destination.

“What we are looking to do is to capitalise on our uniqueness and capitalise on our attributes and market our destination in those areas,” she said and listed festivals like Carnival, Divali and Emancipation that lure tourists here.

Du Boulet noted that other niche markets being focussed on include business and sport tourism and pointed out that 700 more hotel rooms are to come on stream by the end of 2009.

On sport tourism, she said the country has the infrastructure available with five existing stadia and a new state-ofthe- art stadium at Torouba being built and pointed to the fact that TT already hosts several regional and international events.

“Our stadia are booked throughout the year. You have to make a booking a year in advance in order to plan an events,” she said. “That should give you an indication of how fast that niche has been growing.” TDC is also looking at improving the traditional tourism package. Du Boulet outlined plans to bring the Maracas beach up to international standards.

Another niche marketing opportunity comes in the form of eco or green tourism, according to Junior Minister Carlisle Powell, Nevis Island Administration, as he outlined plans to market his island as a green island tourism destination, given its wind and geothermal energy potential. His view is that geothermal energy could potentially power 100 percent of the Caribbean Nevis’ electrical needs.

“I don’t think tourism is any longer just beaches,” Boyce said on the last day of the symposium. “We’ve got to do a little bit more planning.”