Despite the temporary closure of hotels, villas, guesthouses and a number of restaurants for the slow period, Anguilla has had “a very successful tourist season 2018/2019.” That’s the view of Parliamentary Secretary, Tourism, Mr. Cardigan Connor.
“The fact that we were able to go into August when a number of our people stayed in employment, was for me a huge positive objective of trying to have a longer tourist season,” he stated. “I think to have a tourist season for ten months can help all of our people, who work in the industry, to be able to save money rather than to spend what they saved over what was a six-month season in the past.
“The challenge as to how we move forward is now on my mind. It is what we can do to put ourselves in a better position for next year. I think that we laid a solid foundation that we can build on. All the hotels, and other tourist accommodation places reported having a very good season to date – and going forward the bookings look very positive. The question is: what can we do as a destination not just to maintain that achievement but to improve on it?”
Mr. Connor further said: “We are working on getting the proposed direct flight to Anguilla from Miami or Fort Lauderdale, upgrading our ferry terminal facility in St. Maarten with a ‘second slip’ over the coming weeks. It will mean that some of the challenges we faced last year will not be there for our guests coming through St. Maarten.
“For us, here in Anguilla, it is important for us to improve on what we have done. Over the coming weeks we have been doing some work on a national clean-up where quite a lot of debris can be hazardous during a storm. We started in West End where there are about eight bins in different locations such as The Cove, Long Bay, Meads Bay and West End. We are encouraging all residents in those areas to bring out whatever debris they have that will be hazardous in a storm. Apart from this, the clean-up will provide a more aesthetic look throughout our community, and I think that again is important.”
He added: “The challenge I sent out to my people, a year ago, is that if we can donate at least one hour a month of social work that would go a long way towards a general clean-up of our island. We know that for a number of years there have always been the challenges of mosquitoes and the diseases that they cause. One of the things that are vital to us is to create the image that we are one of the cleaner islands in the Caribbean. We know we have some challenges with debris and unsightly scenes around the island. It is up to us to do something about it – and not just to look at someone else to do it for us. We all can do a part in making that happen.”
He took the opportunity to commend the Department of Disaster Management for its terrific work – and other agencies and persons who have helped so far with cleaning-up the island.
Meanwhile, Mr. Connor reflected on promoting Anguilla abroad – as a tourist destination – through road shows and other marketing initiatives. “That will be mainly in London in November at the World Trade Market Show,” he explained. “It is an area in which we will look to see where we can get more visitors coming out of England. The fact is that we have very close ties with Great Britain. It is a source market that feeds a number of islands in the Caribbean. Our percentage in Anguilla is very low, at present, and the idea is for us to improve on that.
“I must say that over the last year…our agents in Europe, South America and North America have done a tremendous job of marketing and promoting Anguilla. I think they will continue to press on doing so.”
