Mass=cheap

Mass tourism not the best option, says investor

Horace Mills, BVI News Online - Thursday, June 5th, 2014 at 11:05 AM

Group Managing Director of I Am Jet Centre Paul Worrell (left) speaks with Premier and Minister of Tourism Dr. D. Orlando Smith

Having relatively large numbers of tourists repeatedly descending on the territory’s shores all at once, a phenomenon usually referred to as mass tourism, is not the best option for the British Virgin Islands, according to group managing director of I Am Jet Centre Paul Worrell.

The jet centre boss, who last month officially launched operations in the territory, said he thinks a focus on premium tourists is not only the best choice for his business, but also for the BVI economy.

He drew reference to Barbados where I Am Jet Centre is based, adding that a position has been taken in that Caribbean country not to go after mass tourism.

“I see a parallel where a strategic decision in Barbados has been taken for some time now where – as a country – we don’t look towards mass tourism, but rather tourism growth that is sustainable given the pristine environment that we have, and also the resort and hotel stock that we have,” said Worrell.

“A focus on premium tourist in general; that can have a bigger economic multiplier effect in the country rather than mass tourism where all of a sudden you might be looking for 300/400/500 room hotel popping up all over the place. I don’t know that that is sustainable here, and that type of tourism is not really what business aviation is all about.”

Responding to journalists during the launch of I am Jet Centre at the Terrence B. Lettsome International Airport, Worrell also stated that the BVI can capitalize significantly on what he described as the territory’s two areas of specialty – marine tourism and financial services.

“Our focus and our clients focus and interest [is] on the finical services sector, business-wise; and the fabulous world-class marine tourism, including the land resorts on the different islands and the marina operations for the super yacht; that’s where the BVI specializes,” he said.

In the meantime, speaking recently with the TravelPulse magazine, BVI Director of Tourism Sharon Flax-Mars expressed the view that the British Virgin Islands is not a “mass-market destination,” adding that there are other things that are a lot more meaningful than mass numbers.

“We have a very strong repeat factor in the BVI, and a lot of personal recommendations. I think that is a lot more meaningful than mass tourism numbers,” Flax-Mars is reported to have told TravelPulse magazine.

Talks about mass tourism come as the National Democratic Party administration presses ahead with major capital projects that it said will eventually attract larger numbers of tourists and also boost the local economy.

As part of that effort, for example, the government in January signed a 15-year berthing agreement with Disney Cruise Lines (DCL) and Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL).

The agreement guarantees a total of 350,000 passengers from NCL and 75,000 passengers from DLC per annum, beginning mid-2015. The cruise liners will be charged $15 per passenger for the first five years.

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12 Comments

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  1. CarefulBVI
    June 5, 2014
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    It’s a no brainer.
    Mass tourism destroys the environment that attracts all visitors. We can just about claim to have a beautiful environment still, despite the efforts of successive governments to destroy it. So yes, we do better to aim for fewer very wealthy tourists than keep encouraging more mass tourists to come trample our environment until it dead.
    Some few people might make money from the mass tourism sector (yes, Romney, that’s you) but it is bad for us overall.
    Anyhow, we BVIslanders don’t care. We just want everything we can get. Right away.
    Careful.

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  2. Puzzle Solved
    June 5, 2014
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    As far as I see, the more tourist, the likely we are to make the money as the wealth is more broadly distributed

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  3. HELLO!
    June 5, 2014
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    Financial services crashing so you all better pray the tourists keep coming in large numbers. We DO NOT have a 3rd pillar. Time some of us wake up and understand what is going on in our coutry. You all dont want tourists, you dont want investments..how the hell is the government going to sustain us? On what? struppsss man

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  4. !!!!!!!!!
    June 5, 2014
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    Like the Hon. Picko said it is about management. The Diffrence between the BVI and a place like Barbados is that Barbados is a country with a plan for the benefit of its people and where policy is enforced. Barbadians would never sit down and accept the corrupt BS that goes down here.

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  • LOL!
    June 5, 2014
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    Did you read the recent news about Barbados? I beg you hard hush you hear?

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  • tax
    June 5, 2014
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    omg i was preaching this for years. dem damn politician in it for the tourists and rich and not them own people.

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  • E.L.Meyers
    June 5, 2014
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    I agree with this. If you think about it you need to look at both the smaller and the larger picture. Looking at our immediate surroundings, we have the USVI and the PR, with huge mass tourist industries. If the British Virgin Island went down the path of premium tourists industry the BVI would stick out from the Lesser Antilles. This would also bring higher growth to small and medium businesses as the government stated they wanted to do (http://bviplatinum.com/news.php?articleId=1401728121)as in this link.

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  • vip
    June 5, 2014
    Poorly-rated. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 6

    Hidden due to low comment ratingClick here to see.

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    • LOL
      June 5, 2014
      Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 0

      Why are you blaming NDP, VIP has done a great job bringing in Cruise ship before NDP. Cruise ships will never stop as long as Taxi drivers are Voters and demand the cruise ships being brought in. So all parties will never listen.

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  • whaaa
    June 5, 2014
    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 0

    More cruise ships = mass tourism

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