Premier urges small property owners to pool resources

Premier and Minister for Tourism Honourable Ralph T. O’Neal, OBE addresses members of the BVI Tourism Accommodation Properties at their annual general meeting on Monday, December 8

Addressing the property owners at the 5th annual general meeting of the BVI Tourist Accommodation Properties (TAP) yesterday, Honourable O’Neal said Government is well aware of the adverse effects of the financial crunch and he urged the TAP members to unite for their common good.

“The pooling of our resources is even more apparent and necessary since competition is making things tougher and tougher as tourism expenditure becomes less and less,” the Premier said.

He stated that to combat declining numbers of visitors, Government is actively engaged in niche marketing, pursuing opportunities in emerging markets like Latin America, China and India.

While the number of vacation travellers may be dwindling, Honourable O’Neal urged the property owners to remain optimistic, noting that “rooms would still be needed to house persons attending conferences and meetings, church functions and family events such as reunions.”

The Premier and Tourism Minister also encouraged the property owners to maintain their competitive edge through the provision of excellent service and ensuring that employees remain well-trained.   ~~Adz:Right~~

“You must be willing to do what the industry requires to be successful,” the Premier stated adding that everyone has “a role to play in strengthening the Territory’s tourism product.”

Acting Director of Tourism Ms. Hadassah Ward in addressing the property owners focussed on responding to their many concerns, including the development of alternative beaches to relieve some of the congestion at Cane Garden Bay, given the throngs of cruise ship visitors who visit there daily.

She said it is imperative that BVI establish a load carrying capacity to ensure that some balance is created and negative experiences do not begin to outweigh the benefits of having visitors.

Noting that the overcrowding at Cane Garden Bay or being rushed through The Baths to accommodate other groups could create bad experiences for visitors, Ms. Ward said “we have to establish our limits and enforce them and that would solve the issue everywhere so everybody gets a piece of the pie.”

The Acting Director of Tourism cited an urgent need to update tourism related legislation. “Unfortunately for us, BVI tourism seems to have outgrown its regulations and outgrown where we are on the papers and in the books and so we need to rewrite all of that.” Ms. Ward said the cooperation of all is necessary as the BVI seeks to improve its tourism product.

President of the BVITAP Ms. Julia Dawson also underscored the importance of cooperation and pledged the organisation’s willingness to collaborate with the BVI Tourist Board to market their properties which according to her “form the backbone of the tourism industry” and have been dubbed “the heart of the BVI”.

The BVI Tourist Accommodation Properties was established in 2003 with a mission to ensure improvements in the profitability of its members, their marketing strategies and their overall standards and service. The organisation works closely with the BVI Tourist Board to enhance and promote the Territory’s tourism product.