Caribbean Tourism Organization Media Day

Thinking of travelling to the Caribbean? Here’s what’s happening and all you need to know about the latest news and trend in the Carribean travel/tourism industry!

Members of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) arrived in Toronto on Thursday, August 22nd, 2019 to provide updates on the state of tourism in the Caribbean. Held inside The Boulevard Club, the media day consisted of a news conference in the morning, a media marketplace in the afternoon, and a luncheon/ceremony for the Caribbean Media Awards.

Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) Media Day Toronto 2019 (image courtesy of Caribbean Tourism Organization)

Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) Media Day in Toronto (image courtesy of Caribbean Tourism Organization)

Following opening remarks from Johnson JohnRose, Communications Specialist for the CTO, members of the media were introduced to Domenic Fedee, Minister of Tourism for St. Lucia and the Chairman of the CTO. Minister Fedee provided updates on the current state of tourism in the Caribbean.
He reported that air arrivals to the region increased by 12% in the first quarter of 2019. The rise in tourism has been showing signs of growth since 2017 when the hurricanes affected many of the Caribbean countries. From January to March 2019, the Caribbean tourism industry saw 9.1 million international tourists arrive in the region, with 1.4 million Canadian tourists contributing to that figure, which is a 4% increase from the previous year. The region’s cruise sub-sector also saw growth with a 9.9% increase in cruise passenger arrivals.
“It speaks to the resilience of the people, the governments, and the industry,” said Minister Fedee as he exalted the resurgence of the Caribbean back to being the world’s leading tourist destination. Other updates provided at the press conference included information about the Sustainable Tourism Conference and plans for a restructuring of the organization into one that is ‘leaner and more effective.’

>After the press conference, the media marketplace opened and members of the trade and consumer media networked with different dignitaries, tourism industry suppliers, and public relations personnel from various Caribbean countries, including St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Jamaica, St. Lucia, and Martinique. Members of the Turks and Caicos Islands Tourist Board presented a list of new luxury hotel developments that will enhance the archipelago’s reputation for being the premier vacation destination for affluent travellers. Coming off the success of the recently launched Fly Away campaign, the islands of The Bahamas were present to promote the destination further. For the travelling fashion lovers who love to shop, Bay Street is the premier shopping district in Nassau due to its close proximity to the cruise ports, upscale restaurants, and blend of high-end boutiques and local shops. Representatives from Grenada aka ‘The Spice Island of the Caribbean’ brought a series of spices, chocolates, and chocolate-rum liqueur as take-home favours and also to promote Spicemas, one of the nation’s most popular summer festivals. The media concluded with a luncheon and announcement of the winners of the CTO’s Caribbean Media Awards. The full list of the winners can be found at the official CTO website.

More about The Caribbean Tourism Organization

The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) is the Caribbean’s tourism development agency comprising of English, French, Dutch, as well as Spanish countries and territories, as well as government and private sector members. The vision of the CTO is to position the Caribbean as the most desirable, year-round, warm-weather destination. For more information about the CTO, please visit their website at https://www.onecaribbean.org/.