The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

The Deputy Prime Minister yesterday said January 2023’s tourism arrivals were some 210,000 ahead of comparatives from 2019’s “banner year” as The Bahamas bids to “meet or exceed” 20 percent growth targets.

Chester Cooper, also minister for tourism, aviation and investments, told the House of Assembly during the mid-year Budget debate that visitor numbers for the first month of the year were some 33 percent ahead of that pre-COVID performance.

“In terms of arrivals, we see that in 2022, the numbers were up 233 percent over 2021 and we achieved the seven million visitor mark but fell just shy of 2019,” Mr Cooper said. “To understand the gravity of the seven million mark, note that it has only happened once before in the history of The Bahamas. We are targeting 20 percent growth in tourism for 2023, and we have every reason to believe we are going to meet and or exceed that target.

Describing 2019 as a “banner year for tourism” with over 7.2m visitors, Mr Cooper added: “When we look at what is happening in 2023, we are shattering 2022 numbers and 2019 numbers. That’s good news. What is even better news is that we saw nearly one million visitors to The Bahamas in the first month of this year.

“I’ll repeat that; you may hear me repeat a few things today. In January, we saw nearly one million visitors to The Bahamas. For context, in January of 2023 we saw 846,000 visitors. That number was 300,000 in January 2022. That is a 166 percent increase from January 2022 to January 2023.

“When we look at 2019; remember that was the banner year, we saw 636,881 air and sea arrivals. January 2023 is a 33 percent increase over 2019 and this trend is holding throughout the islands.” Mr Cooper’s address focused solely on volumes, or arrivals numbers, and there was no mention of tourist spending and how this indicator was faring.

The deputy prime minister yesterday said there had been a 400 percent rise in sea arrivals for Grand Bahama, with “momentum growing” ahead of the Carnival cruise port being completed next year.

Departure tax collections have increased with the growth in visitor arrivals following their COVID-induced interruption, with Mr Cooper saying: “For the first six months of this fiscal year, departure tax collections totaled $71.5m, an improvement of $45m or 85 percent over the prior year.

“In the first half of the year, we collected 73.7 percent of the Budget target for departure tax. Beyond arrivals in 2022, room revenues, average daily rates, overall occupancies and spending by cruise visitors are all up.”

New airlift includes JetBlue starting its New York La Guardia to Nassau route this month. Neos airlines will establish the Milan to Freeport route in May, and JSX airlines will establish its Dallas, Miami and Whiten Plains route to Marsh Harbour in June. Western Air is also set to establish a new Fort Lauderdale to Freeport route in May.

Turning to the introduction of passenger facility charges to finance upgrades at Family Island airports, Mr Cooper said Bahamian taxpayers are already paying $13m per year to finance maintenance of these facilities. The user fees will provide a more direct means of funding from those who actually pass through these airports, with international passengers paying more than Bahamian and resident travellers.

“I saw that there were some rumblings over the coming increase in user fees in the Family Islands,” the deputy prime minister said. “What has not been said is that taxpayers are subsidising the Family Island airports right now for almost $13m a year even in their dilapidated state, whether they use them or not. We can do better, and we will.

“Let me first say that what we are going to do with Family Island airports has never been done in the history of this country. This will revolutionise aviation and bring a significant boost to our Family Islands. Let me also say that residents will pay more but will pay significantly less than international travellers.

“The number one complaint we get from domestic and international passengers in the Family Islands is about the airports – not the fees. Resorts have complained of guests falling out in the sun as they wait to be processed, visitors complain about toilets not working, leaks and general disrepair. These new airports will eliminate those issues and will accommodate more security personnel for faster processing.”