BARBADOS TOURISM MARKETING INC. chairman Alvin Jemmott thinks all of the pieces for a successful tourism industry are coming together.
And he feels the $450 million transformation of the hotel Sam Lord’s Castle property in St Philip into a Wyndam Grand Resort Hotel property will be a major plus.
Asked if all of the required things, including increased airlift and additional hotel rooms, were now going in Barbados’ favour, Jemmott said: “It’s been a lot of hard work and a strategic direction and I think that they are in the right place. You have to grow airlift capacity in order to grow hotel capacity and I think we have them together.
“I think it’s a huge vote of confidence in the Barbados tourism product . . . to see that others are willing to come to the fore, it’s a great thing and it gives us more confidence to move forward.”
As for the redevelopment of Sam Lord’s Castle, the veteran hotelier said it was a moment of personal pride for him, “having spent 18 years here at Sam Lord’s Castle myself”.
“I would admit that this was my training ground and it’s a wonderful feeling to see that this property, which has been the catalyst for the development of so many tourism persons, is coming back and I hope that a lot of what I would have experienced as a youngster growing up in the tourism industry can be once again experienced with a property of this size,” he said.
“There is a saying that size does matter and, of course, a hotel of this size has a lot more opportunity to spread its wings and to offer that year round facility.
“Sam Lord’s Castle has always been a very picturesque location, being on the rustic south-east coast of Barbados, and it has that natural charm.
“So I am hoping that all of those aspects will be preserved.” (SC)
