The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas is expecting a strong 2013 group business performance starting with three to four major conferences this month, the Minister of Tourism telling Tribune Business these were expected to generate around 4,000 stopover visitors.

Disclosing that he was not worried over the early 2013 first quarter resort booking pace lagging behind 2012 comparatives, Obie Wilchcombe said: “I’m not overly concerned about that at all.

“I think that what’s going to happen is, once our message is out there and we are able to get more presence in the market, it will pick up. People are coming looking for something, so we have to ensure that we have things for them to come for. I know we are goi8ng to have a great year and be better than last year. The work that we are doing, I think, will pay dividends and we will have great season.”

Mr Wilchcombe added: “One of the things you are going to see with our booking engine is inventory management, which means we will know weeks and months out how our bookings are, and we will know what we have to do to get the bookings up in the various islands and hotels.

“We will manage our business in a way where we are not guessing, and we are going to be on top of it. We are receiving information that helps us prepare. We are not taking any of the information and tossing it aside. We are analysing what has been done, and taking it and using it to connect.”

Mr Wilchcombe said group business was looking strong for 2013. “Even this month you are going to see three to four conferences in the Bahamas,” he told Tribune Business.

“This month alone we are going to see the Caribbean Hotel Tourism Association (CHTA) Marketplace; that’s 1,500 delegates. We are going to see the Progressive Baptist National Convention, that’s 2,000 delegates, and then we are going to see the Methodist church convention, who will bring, I think, another 400-600 delegates. We are going to see that sort of thing on a regular basis in the Bahamas, so group is going to be big in our our business.”