The Bahamas’ tourism sector continued to expand despite disruptions to the product in Grand Bahama as a result of Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne in September, 2004, statistics for the first quarter of 2005 have revealed.
Ministry of Finance statistics indicate the expansion was characterized by in stopover visits and robust pricing and hotel room occupancy levels, particularly for New Providence. Total visitor arrivals rose by 8.9 per cent to a record five million in 2004, compared with gains of 4.3 per cent and 5.3 per cent in 2002. Visitors from the United States were the largest contributors to that total.
Air arrivals, which included stopover activity, increased by 1.5 per cent to 1.5 million visitors. Sea arrivals, reflecting the continued growth of the cruise sector, rose by 12.3 per cent to 3.6 million. The growth in cruise visitors, in addition to the pricing gains and room night sales to stopover visitors, boosted tourism earnings by an estimated four per cent to $1.8 billion.
A Ministry of Tourism survey of large hotel properties indicated that room revenues recovered by 3.4 per cent last year following a 6.1 per cent decline in 2003. Occupied room nights rose by 1.7 per cent while the average nightly room rate also rose by 1.7 per cent to just over $151 million.
The Ministry of Finance officials say evidence suggests a complete recovery from “capacity and other setbacks” that occurred from September through December, 2004. They say while the disruption from the severe damage to hotel properties resulted in decreased industry earnings for Grand Bahama, the Family Islands recorded increases in total sector earnings as a result of increased stopover capacity in islands such as Exuma, which escaped major damage.
The outlook for tourism remains positive for the medium-term and has taken on more certainty since 2004 as external factors, including the weak US dollar, are supporting visitor demand. Moreover, increased external confidence in the sector is resulting in major inflows of foreign investments into resort developments. These inflows, officials say, are supporting significant upgrade and expansion in capacity. “In line with the increased inflows into the tourism sector, The Bahamas is experiencing a steady increase in direct airlift, including low fare carriers from North America,” the officials say.
“Furthermore, it is expected that by the summer of 2005, there will be increases in airlift from Europe. The Government is also giving priority to the upgrade of key ports of entry in New Providence and the Family Islands, ensuring that comprehensive attention is given to infrastructure needs,” they reported.
