NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism Aviation and Investments Chester Cooper says that the Florida market presents a tremendous opportunity to increase visitor arrivals to this nation, noting that it is currently attracting less than half a million visitors a year from that market.
Cooper headed a sales mission in Florida as part of the “Bringing The Bahamas to You” campaign.
He said: “We wanted to engage with the media houses and influencers and our major stakeholders in terms of hotels, airlines, and other industry partners. We have been able to engage directly with persons interested in investing in The Bahamas in the aviation sector and the tourism sector.
“We have met with some of the major sporting teams the Orlando Magic and the Miami Dolphins and we expect that we will continue those types of partnerships. They have a very large reach and these are beloved teams in The Bahamas, especially the Dolphins. I expect that through this ongoing partnership we will be able to find synergies. We will do joint promotions, and be able to access their databases.”
Cooper added: “We have always had Florida as a market but we haven’t scratched the tip of the iceberg. Out of the 22 million people living in Florida, we get less than half a million tourists from Florida every year.”
Cooper said that the Ministry which already has a relationship with Disney is seeking to further leverage that partnership and convince travelers from emerging markets to consider joint destination vacations.
“They could perhaps do three days in Orlando and five days in The Bahamas or vice versa. Perhaps persons taking long flights from the Middle East will find it prudent to visit The Bahamas after they have visited Disney,” Cooper said.
The series of sales missions will continue on to New York later this month. Further stops in the US include Atlanta, Georgia; Houston, Texas; Charlotte, North Carolina; and Los Angeles, California, followed by cities across Canada.
In addition to major travel hubs throughout the US and Canada, the delegation will be heading to Brazil and the United Arab Emirates to bring a taste of Bahamian culture directly to key international markets across the globe to inspire travel to the destination.
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