BRIDGETOWN – Grenada has launched a campaign to woo Barbadians to the Spice Isle, as part of an initiative to increase its visitor arrivals from the Caribbean.
Chief Executive Officer of the Grenada Tourism Authority (GTA) Rudy Grant is leading a delegation here that will hold talks with travel agents this week.
He told a news conference that in just over a decade, the Caribbean had become Grenada’s third largest source market.
“When I went to Grenada in January of 2014 the Caribbean was the fourth largest source market for Grenada. It is now the third largest source market. It has been growing and it is just around 19 per cent as well. The UK market is just about that but in terms of actual numbers the UK market is still our second largest market but the Caribbean has been growing.
“Of course during special activities you will see that there is greater Caribbean travel. During Spice Mas, I can report to you for example that during Spice Mas we would have seen a good increase, an increase of over 8 000 additional visitors coming into our Spice Mas,” Grant said.
He said that the GTA has also held a similar promotion drive in Trinidad, which has proven to be successful, and they are now targeting the Barbados market, which has the potential for significant growth.
“Let me say that one of the things we do at the tourism authority is to ensure that we use a scientific approach to the development of our industry. We do not depend on luck and chance. We do not depend on serendipity. We do not hope for good things. We actually plan our success,” Grant told reporters
He said Grenada has done “a remarkable job” of enhancing its tourism industry since the passage of Hurricane Ivan in 2004, which decimated the island’s housing stock and agriculture industry.
GTA’s Marketing Manager Francine Stewart outlined some of the new product offerings, including the Grenada Sailing Festival, the Pure Grenada Music Festival, the annual Chocolate Festival, and Spice Mas.
She said that given the number of events as well as scenic attractions, the tri-island state of Grenada, Carriacou and Petit Martinique is an alternative to Miami, which is a preferred destination for many Caribbean travellers.
“We believe that now is the time to come over and start … engaging the travel trade and the different tour operators, and giving them all the reasons why when a client walks in the door (they should) help them choose Grenada.
“Grenada is an ideal and excellent destination to experience something different because we recognise that Barbados doesn’t necessarily have the topography and the options that Grenada has,” Stewart said. (CMC)
