THE
CARIBBEAN MARKET has gone soft, the apparent result of the
changed U.S. passport policy and economic uncertainties, such as
the drop in housing values, according to tourism officials and
hoteliers. Business from U.S. travelers, who constitute the largest
source market for the Caribbean, has declined as much as 10% this
year in some destinations, according to the Caribbean Tourism
Organization, although tourism officials admitted that it was
difficult to cite specific numbers in terms of visitor fall off
because reporting periods differ by destination. Vincent
Vanderpool-Wallace, the CTO's secretary general, said that the
effects of the passport initiative "as well as the processing
problems experienced by the passport bureau -- as we anticipated
from the beginning -- will continue to have a negative effect on
the Caribbean over time." Hugh Riley, the CTO's director of
marketing for the Americas, also cited the negative effects of the
softened U.S. housing market, especially on the "middle America
market, which affects their ability to travel." CTO will examine
new markets and the development of strategies to diversify business
sources and to guard against sharp declines in major source markets
at the annual Caribbean Tourism Conference in San Juan in October.
CAYMAN
AIRWAYS will execute the second stage of its new flight
plan with the launch of its winter schedule on Nov. 9. The initial
stage was set in motion June 24 with the introduction of the
carrier's twice-weekly nonstop service between New York (Kennedy)
and Grand Cayman. For the winter, Cayman Airways will resume
seasonal, twice-weekly service on Thursdays and Sundays from
Chicago, increase its New York service to four flights a week and
add a fifth weekly flight on Feb. 9. Other schedule enhancements
include daily service from Tampa and an increase in flights between
Grand Cayman and Kingston, Jamaica, from 12 to 14 a week. The
carrier also will permanently suspend its service from Houston to
Grand Cayman. The flights already had been suspended for September
and October. Advance booking forecasts indicated low loads
throughout the winter, according to Patrick Strasburger, CEO. "We
do not expect to re-enter this market in the medium term but will
concentrate on more productive routes." Cayman Airways is working
with Continental and other airline partners to rebook ticketed
passengers, both to/from Houston and those connecting in
Houston.
THE O
PROPERTY COLLECTION will break ground late this year on
the Mandarin Oriental Dellis Cay, a $1 billion private island
development in the Turks and Caicos, 20 minutes by boat from
Providenciales. The first phase of the project on the southwestern
shore of the previously uninhabited 2.24-square-mile Dellis Cay
will cover 35 acres and will include the 120-room Mandarin Oriental
beachfront hotel, private villas and residences, a marina with 110
boat slips and a 22,000-square-foot spa, designed by Japanese
architect Kengo Kuma, which will be built over a lake. The grand
opening of the first phase is scheduled for the fall of 2009. For
details, visit www.delliscay.com.
LESS THAN
THREE MONTHS after its opening, Grenada's nine-villa
Paradise Bay Resort, with its signature utility-grade windmill
producing the energy necessary to run the resort, has taken its
energy-conservation policy to a new level. The property will launch
a "carbon neutral" program this fall, according to James Post,
owner and managing director. Guests will receive carbon credit
certificates attesting to the levels and amounts of carbon dioxide
emissions produced by their flights to Grenada and during their
stay at the resort. To offset the emissions, projects will be
undertaken by the resort to reduce the emission of greenhouse
gases, Post said. Additional details will be released shortly. To
contact the resort, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.paradisebayresort.net.
Caribbean
Editor: Gay Nagle Myers
Phone: (201) 902-1924
[email protected]
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