Several stakeholders in the tourism industry gathered at the Eileen Parsons Auditorium for a consultation meeting where they voiced their concerns and offer recommendations on the way forward for the industry. Photo: VINO

Chairman of the BVI Tourist Board Russell Harrigan said he welcomed the suggestions of stakeholders to improve the industry.

The consultation which was spearheaded by the BVI Tourist Board (BVITB), was chaired by BVITB Chairman Russell Harrigan who assured the many stakeholders who turned up for the meeting, that their ideas, recommendations and suggestions to help develop the industry were crucial to the industry’s survival.

One of the most prominent concerns of the industry came from some small property owners who expressed their dissatisfaction with the target promotion of the Tourist Board which they said seem to centre around the larger businesses who attract clients from the high income bracket of over $100,000 per year.

One stakeholder, Donna Abraira of Agape Cottages in Cane Garden Bay, Tortola, said the true heart and soul of the tourism product is the small property businesses. She believes that small property owners have missed out on marketing with the larger businesses being well marketed and promoted and are successful. She appealed to small property owners to network with each other and that their best customers are their repeat customers. She said for her, 50 percent of her business is repeat customers.

“When people come into the airport, the first person is immigration individual if they are not timely and friendly and greet us with a smile they will remember that for their entire trip,” she said, noting that there are several other islands that a tourists may chose in the Caribbean if they do not receive good hospitality in the Virgin Islands.

The Cane Garden Bay businesswoman also called for police marine presence in Cane Garden Bay where she said several speed boats are racing through anchorage which is dangerous and can end up in someone being killed which she fears.

She said measures need to be put in place to fine and detain such individuals which can put an end to such behavior.

Taxi professional Julio Henry, who also runs a service website www.bvi360.com that offers a variety of services to tourists for tours, and sightseeing in the Virgin Islands, said the BVI Tourist Board must find a way to pull all the services together related to the tourism product and list them on their website.

He too noted that the VI attracts a variety of tourists and not just those that earn more than $100,000 and if the Board was going to market the Virgin Islands, it needs to market everything, not just a particular entity or interest.

He suggests that when the Board is doing their international marketing of the VI, they should contact the various sectors in the industry in advance to see who can accompany them on their trip or have information supplied to the Board to distribute during their marketing campaigns. He also suggests that while it is good to look at Asia and North America markets, the Caribbean also has tourists who can be targeted.

Another small business operator in the tourism industry said it was important for something to be done to attract tourists from the lower income bracket as well, since his business primarily targets such tourists.

Another stakeholder pointed to the spate in burglaries where dinghies and items are stolen from tourists and cautioned that it’s an impediment to the industry and needs to be urgently corrected.

One small business operator suggested that the Tourist Board look at representing the 60 islands in their promotion images rather than just one island while another recommended that the bold red letters of “British” in the TB’s logo, “British Virgin Islands Tourist Board” can be changed since it places more emphasis on British rather than the Virgin Islands.

The recommendations and suggestions that came out of the consultation were noted by the BVITB staff and are expected to be tabled for consideration when the Board meets to discuss the way forward for the industry.