SeaTrade Insider: Caribbean warned to improve product or lose calls

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Caribbean warned to improve product or lose calls - SeaTrade Insider

 Destinations that do not make improvements may end up losing cruise business as the status quo is no longer acceptable' was the message to Cruise Shipping Miami delegates from Carnival Cruise Lines vp commercial port operations Carlos Torres de Navarra.

Speaking at the Caribbean/Mexico conference session, he quoted examples of destinations such as Cozumel and Roatán where changes had benefited and boosted their cruise tourism and others such as the Cayman Islands where the continued need to tender was having a negative impact on the cruise passenger experience.

Martinique saw its cruise traffic fall from 600,000 to 50,000 in a decade because, according to its Tourism Authority Commissioner Karine Roy-Camille: 'We were so slow to react to what the islands around us were doing. We did not pay enough attention and it is a long way back. We have improved the product and managed 20% increases for the last three but it still means we expect only 160,000 in the next season.'

This turnaround has included the setting up last year of a Cruise Committee (a network of private and public sector stakeholders), a 'Builders of Paradise' campaign to raise awareness among the entire community of cruising’s importance to their economy, the revamping of key areas in Fort-de-France and the development of welcome teams to help independent cruise tourists.

'Cruise traffic is still too seasonal,' she said, 'so for the first time we are offering incentives for summer calls in the form of lower port dues, pilot charges, shipping agency fees and tour prices.'
Panel moderator Mike Ronan, vp government relations-Caribbean, Latin America and Asia for Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., said: 'The reality is that cruising is very global and no longer just a North American pastime so the Caribbean has to compete with new, emerging destinations.'

The demand for new experiences was underlined by Torres de Navarra who looked forward to the opening next month of the new Balmoral Park in Nassau in which Carnival has collaborated with a local developer. 'This will be a completely new experience for cruise passengers—not just the same-old, same-old which has been such a problem in the Caribbean and some other destinations.'
Puerto Costa Maya president Teófilo Hamui explained how—after creating a new cruise port out of the Mexican jungle and becoming a major cruise call—business was destroyed along with the infrastructure by a 2007 hurricane.

'Although we rebuilt, we have struggled to get back to the same level of cruise traffic. We have been looking for a new wow factor and think we now have it in Xcabel, a Mayan site which was discovered about five years ago and has been restored so that it can open to the public from next year. It has the tallest Mayan pyramid to be uncovered to date and it is just 80 minutes’ drive from the port.
'We have also upgraded the urban landscape around the port and added restaurants to the terminal. We also have plans to turn a 45-acre site into an adventure and water park called the Mayan Kingdom.'

Chukka Caribbean Adventures director Marc Melville agreed on the need to constantly refresh the tour product. 'Some will only have a three- to five-year lifespan. There was a fad 10 years ago for bike and kayak tours. Now you see hardly any. We close down five or six tours every year and replace them with something new.'

Large park-style attractions will have a longer life but only if they are constantly upgraded, he said: 'We are already starting on phase two of the Good Hope heritage attraction we created for the new Falmouth port in Jamaica.'

According to another speaker, Sustainable Travel International vp business development Brian Herlihy, Cozumel is also taking a necessary long-term view of its tourism product. 'It has recognised areas it needs to address before they become an issue and that is not just about destination management but rather destination stewardship,' he said. 'It wants to create a sustainable destination over the next 15-20 years.'