St George’s, Grenada — Grenada is expected to have another successful year for tourism arrivals, according to reports from the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s 2015 Caribbean Travel Marketplace held from 28th to 30th January 2015.
Members of the international travel trade shared that booking figures for Grenada vacations in 2015 are up. As of January 2015, US-based Travel Impressions recorded a 23% increase, with an estimated sales revenue of $1.3 million; Virgin Holidays noted a 12.5% increase and 19% increase in revenue for January alone; while the UK-based Trailfinders boasted a 73% increase with 526 room nights already booked.
The travel trade partners credited the driving force behind Grenada’s ascent as the “new Caribbean destination,” to its authenticity, and under-commercialization – two traits popularly requested by consumers.
The positive sentiments expressed by the travel trade were well received by the delegation from Grenada led by Yolande Bain-Horsford, minister for tourism and civil aviation. The delegation included Sir Royston Hopkin, ambassador for tourism, and from the Grenada Tourism Authority, Rudy Grant, chief executive officer; Christine Noel-Horsford, USA director of sales; and Nisha McIntyre, marketing executive.
The team engaged in a series of robust interviews with trade companies and these face-to-face dialogues provided valuable insight about Grenada’s performance in the marketplace.
The 2015 Caribbean Travel Marketplace is the Caribbean’s largest marketing event. It affords tourism suppliers the opportunity to meet face-to-face with wholesalers from around the world, who sell Caribbean vacations.