The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Family Island hotels were yesterday said to “like the wicket we are on” with airline bookings through August up by double-digit percentages for many destinations despite the Trump-induced global economic turmoil.

Kerry Fountain, the Bahamas Out Island Promotion Board’s executive director, told Tribune Business that both room revenues and room nights sold at member properties were ahead of prior year comparatives for January and February 2025 on a like-for-like basis to make it four consecutive months of improvement since last year’s US presidential election.

And, conceding that Family Island resorts “just hope it lasts” given the stock market upheaval, and related inflation and recession fears as a result of the US president’s trade and tariff policies, he disclosed that airline ticket sold for key destinations such as Abaco and North Eleuthera are ahead of 2024 comparisons by 14 percent and 13 percent, respectively, for the period April to August 2025.

“It’s been a roller coaster,” Mr Fountain told this newspaper of the fall-out from Mr Trump’s constantly-changing tariff policies, with the US president having been forced by the brutal market reaction that wiped $5 trillion off the value of US stocks to “pause” previously-announced higher levies. For the next 90 days until early July, most countries will face the same 10 percent tariff that Mr Trump placed on Bahamian exports to the US.

The significant bond market sell-off, which caused prices to decline and yields (interest rates) to rise, is also likely to have influenced the US president’s calculations given the pressure this imposed on US borrowing costs. Mr Fountain, meanwhile, said Promotion Board member properties and all Family Island hotels are hoping that early 2025’s momentum continues and forward bookings escape largely unscathed.

“For the first two months of this year, 2025, we were up 14 percent in room nights sold compared to 2024,” he revealed of Promotion Board member properties, “and 7 percent up compared to 2019. With room revenue we were seeing the same growth; 14 percent up through January and February this year compared to 2024, and that represents a 33 percent surge over what we did in 2019 comparing apples to apples.”

And, “lifting the hood”, Mr Fountain said the room nights sold growth for the first two months of 2025 was driven by improvements on Andros, Bimini, Acklins, San Salvador and Long Island. However, Abaco, Cat Island, Eleuthera and Exuma all suffered year-over-year decreases compared to the same period in 2024.

Yet Abaco, along with Promotion Board member properties on Bimini, Long Island, San Salvador and Acklins saw room revenues increase year-over-year for January and February 2025. Andros, Cat Island, Eleuthera and Exuma were down compared to early 2—024.

Then, drawing on data supplied by Forward Keys, which measures the number of airline tickets sold by carriers who are members of the industry’s global distribution system - the likes of American Airlines, Delta, Bahamasair and Silver Airways - Mr Fountain said many key Family Island destinations are showing double-digit increases despite the blow delivered to consumer and business confidence by tariff uncertainty.

“If you look at our key airports, and those airline tickets sold, Marsh Harbour for April to August is up 14 percent compared to last year as at March 2025,” he told Tribune Business. “Abaco is up almost 14 percent, Bimini is up about 48 percent, North Eleuthera is up 13 percent, Governor’s Harbour is up 15 percent and Rock Sound is down about 22 percent in terms of tickets sold.

“George Town is down 6 percent. The good news there with George Town, as you know Sandals is presently no more, so that’s definitely having an impact, but because of a shortage of aircraft Bahamasair was not flying its Fort Lauderdale to George Town route. We found out yesterday that Bahamasair will resume service in on June 23 twice a week, Monday and Thursday, from Fort Lauderdale to George Town.

“We expect to see that 6 percent decline to George Town easing as the Bahamasair service factors in. And let me also say this. Last year, after about July right through the US presidential election, most destinations in the Caribbean took a hit in terms of air stopovers etc, etc,” Mr Fountain continued.

“Since last year November, as numbers started to inch up, November and December, both of the were up in room nights sold and room revenue compared to the same period in 2023. January and February 2025 were also up compared to the same period in 2024. After taking a hit all of last summer and into early fall, we’ve seen four consecutive months for member hotels of better room nights sold and room revenue.

“We like the wicket we are on. As far as the tariffs are concerned, we have remind ourselves we can only control what we can control.” Emanuel “Manny” Alexiou, the Bahamas Out Island Promotion Board’s president and also the Abaco Beach Resort’s proprietor, confirmed to Tribune Business yesterday that “bookings are strong through August” and the industry must simply “do the best we can” in the circumstances.

“It’s a difficult one. Of course any disruption to business cycles is possibly going to create havoc,” he agreed. “People start deferring investment deals, they defer vacations. We did notice at the West Palm Beach Boat Show this March that people were putting off boat sales and purchases. Boat sales were at the Show. Normally they expect a lot of sales.

“I think people are afraid to make big decisions. But bookings are strong through August. That’s very much generally and several other months we see are over the same time last year. They look strong. People have a right to cancel, but those at the upper level are still spending and The Bahamas is seen as expensive.

“People are still travelling but I sense they are putting off big decisions until they get a sense of what’s happening,” Mr Alexiou added. “We are seeing some cancellations, but are just more sensitive to it perhaps. They are being replaced immediately with new reservations, and we are up.

“We are more sensitive to any cancellations now, trying to read what’s in it. We have just got to do the best we can and take advantage of other opportunities. There’s the Canadian market. People don’t want to go to the US. Unfortunately, they are at a less expensive level and like all-inclusives. They like going to the Dominican Republic, Cuba and Mexico, but wealthy people will still come to us.

“We have to be very optimistic but just very cautious. If you’re planning to do some capital expenditure, put it off for a little bit.”