TTC Online #214 - World Travel Market (WTM) (English Edition)

International Tourism Publication founded in 1996 Year XII • No. 214 • November 2012 • Europe Edition • www.traveltradecaribbean.com • ISSN 1724 - 5370 Poste italiane Spa - Sped. in Abb. Post. D.L. 353/2003 Conv. in L. 27/02/2004, no. 46 Art. 1 comma 1, DCB Milano - Prezzo per copia EURO 0,25

Caribbean to Reach 30 Million Tourists in 2030 The Caribbean will reach the 30 million international tourists in 2030, and will be the fourth world subregion in arrivals per

resident population, Carlos Vogeler, regional director for the Americas of the World Tourism Organization, estimated in his lecture

Performance and trends of international tourism, given at the FITCuba 2012 International Tourism Fair.

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Cuba at WTM

Cuba’s stand at WTM 2011. Photo: TTC.

The WTM will have a varied representation of Cuban entities and their commercial partners…

Ministry of Tourism, Gran Caribe, Gavio­ ta, Cubanacán Group, Islazul, Habaguanex, San Cristóbal Travel Agency, Cubanacán Travel Agency, Cubatur, Sandals, Iberostar, SuperClubs and Meliá Hotels International.

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Inter-American Tourism and Multidestination Tourism Last year the WTO registered 982 million international tourists, who spent 1.03 billion dollars: 1,050 dollars per tourist. Of these, Latin America and the Caribbean received 78 million tourists and 66 billion dollars in tourist income: 846 dollars per tourist.

What’s happening with this region? It is at a semi-standstill: in 2005 it received 10% of the world tourist flow and 9% of the tourist income; it dropped in 2011 when it received 8% of the international tourists and 6% of the income.

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Dominican Republic Invests to Double Tourist Arrivals. The Dominican Republic received 3.2 million visitors from January to August of this year –around +7% than the same period in 2011. This is a good premise for its project to reach the 10 million tour-

Investment Projections in the Cays North of Cuba

ists in the next five years, which implies doubling the number of arrivals. The interview given to TTC by Eng. Luis Maldonado, Counselor of the Dominican Republic Embassy in Cuba, is about the strong investment process that accompanies this aim. 4

English Presence in the Caribbean: a History Imprint

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Trinidad and Tobago Celebrates 50th Anniversary of Independence

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English-Speaking Caribbean Still Confident of Its Beaches

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Today, British tourism is considered among Cuba and the Caribbean’s principal tourist markets. The tourist offer should

create the bases for a cultural tourism that transmits the centuries-old ties between these nations.

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

Carlos Vogeler, regional director for the Americas of the World Tourism Organization. Photo: TTC.

Caribbean to Reach 30 Million Tourists in 2030

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t is estimated that “tourism constitutes 5% of the world GDP, directly, and 9% indirectly…it generates from 6% to 7% of direct or indirect jobs in the world (1 out of each 12 jobs), and is a very important export activity since it represents 30% on a global level of export of services,” Vogeler affirmed.

In 2011, world tourism reached 990 million arrivals (+4.6%), just in terms of overnight stays, and passed the barrier of a trillion dollars in income for world tourist destinations (1.03 trillion).

The Americas attracted 16% of the world arrivals and close to 20% of the total income. The insular Caribbean, in particular, received 21 million arrivals (2.1%

of the world total), 73.7% of them concentrated in seven destinations; and registered an income of $24.3 billion (+4.6%).

Vogeler referred to the “tourist development of the small island states, which obviously include those of the Caribbean. We will analyze a series of factors that have a specific incidence in the way in which they have to work tourism, since they have some traits that are very different from those of other competitors.”

Based on the premises of the high dependence on the North American and European markets, and the fact that some Caribbean destinations are beginning to notice more the emerging Latin American markets, some of the key elements for the Caribbean’s market are: innovation of products through a multidestination platform; improvements in the air interconnection in the area; strengthening of the position of the Caribbean brand as a unique destination; intensification of the association of the public and private sectors; and establishment of integrated tourist policies that facilitate intraregional travel. ■

Country Dominican Republic Puerto Rico Cuba Jamaica Bahamas Aruba Barbados

Arrivals 4,306,000 3,679,000 2,688,000 1,952,000 1,344,000 871,000 568,000

Tel. +39 02 36649575 Fax +39 02 36649576 E-mail italia@traveltradecaribbean.com commerciale.it@gmail.com Web www.traveltradecaribbean.com Honorary President Renzo Druetto Principal Director Giuseppe Ferraris Director Alfredo Rodríguez director@traveltradecaribbean.com Marketing Director Jesús Rodríguez jrd@traveltradecaribbean.com Editorial Staff for Italy Tiziana Settanni redazione.italia@traveltradecaribbean.com ttc.italia@gmail.com Tel.: +39 02 36540545 Editorial Staff for Cuba Josefina Pichardo redaccion@traveltradecaribbean.com Designer Andro Liuben Pérez Diz androliuben@traveltradecaribbean.com Digital News Services Frank Martín

International tourism Caribbean 2011 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Via Galileo Galilei, 47 20092 Cinisello Balsamo, Mi

Income (million $) 4,209,000 3,598,000 2,187,000 2,001,000 2,059,000 1,251,000 1,052,000

Source: World Tourism Organization.

Webmaster Ariel ESTRADA webmaster@traveltradecaribbean.com Collaboration and Marketing Ana Cecilia Herrera anac@traveltradecaribbean.com Dagmara Blanco / Orlando Ojeda dagmara@traveltradecaribbean.com orlando.ojeda@traveltradecaribbean.com Ernesto L. Rodríguez ernesto@traveltradecaribbean.com

Cuba at WTM

The United Kingdom is still rent operations with the market’s one of the principal issuers for the principal tour operators –Thomas Cuba tourist destination, ranking Cook, TUI UK, Virgin Holidays, in second place.

The Holiday Place; increasing the The favorite destinations of summer air operations to Jardines British visitors are: Varadero, del Rey, Holguín and the cays of Holguín, Jardines del Rey, the Villa Clara; introducing and posicays of Villa Clara and Havana. tioning Cuba in the programming They consume mainly, by orof the market’s cruise ships; and der of preference, the following positioning the scuba diving, cytourist products: sun and beach, clotourism, nature, events and incombinations, circuits, weddings centives product. and honeymoons, scuba diving During the last year, Cuba reand other variants of specialized ceived 175,822 tourists from the tourism.

United Kingdom, 0.8% more than The principal objectives of the the previous year, when 174,343 tourist strategy Cuba has drawn Cuba’s stand at WTM 2011. Photo: TTC. had been received. In the Januaryup with respect to this market August period, the latest available are increasing the number of visitors and diversify- official figures by the National Office of Statistics and ing the market segments, for which the following ac- Information at the close of this edition revealed that tions are taken into account: consolidating the cur- 103,380 British visitors had arrived on the island. ■

Magdalena García magda@enet.cu María E. Leyva mariae.leyva@traveltradecaribbean.com Silvia I. Alfonso silvia@traveltradecaribbean.com Zoe Alfonso zoe@traveltradecaribbean.com Mercedes GUILLOT Printer Palcograf Registered at the Milan Court under the number 166. 13/03/2002. Publicity 45%. Property of Travel Trade Caribbean S.R.L. Registry date at the Chamber of Commerce: 08/01/2001. Registered in ROC Italia (registry of communications operators). Distributed through postal subscription. Cost of copy: 0.25 USD. Partial or total reproduction of the articles is forbidden without the express authorization of their authors, who have legal rights over them and are responsible for their contents.

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Dominican Republic Invests to Double Tourist Arrivals

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o give an overview of the works in execution in each of the Dominican Republic’s tourist destinations to support the 10 million arrivals, Mr. Maldonado began by referring to the modern recreation park of the Bávaro-Punta Cana region, the Extreme Park –valued at 180 million USD–, which would be the largest park of its kind in Latin America, whose foundation stone was laid by the president of the Caribbean nation, Danilo Medina.

“In the tourist destination of Boca Chica-Juan Dolio…,” he noted, “a project is being developed that is very linked to the tourist activity, for the expansion of rooms in apartments –towers built facing the seashore–, for residential homes as well as for leisure. In any case, those who buy them can use all the services offered in the area.” For this purpose, even areas where there currently exist old tourist installations will be used. Puerto Plata, one of the traditional destinations, was the most dynamic in the 1980s-early 1990s, but in recent years its development has been slow.

“The Bávaro-Punta Cana pole emerged subsequently,” the counselor explains, “the country’s principal destination, where the greatest development has taken place in the tourist sector and which has the largest amount of rooms and service offers and the airport with the largest operational volume, Punta Cana (even more than that of Santo Domingo, Las Américas), a sign of the flow of passengers that come and go [more than half of the visitors arrived from January to August 2012 through this air terminal]. The whole world has reference about Punta Cana; in the area’s different hotel complexes we also have excellent golf courses, designed by the sector’s principal specialists, where prominent Dominican sports and arts figures carry out their annual events of this sport, which have an important repercussion in the golf world, since big international stars participate in them attracted, among other things, by the quality of the golf courses.

“To the east of the country, where there are many attractions, other investments are being made in areas outside Bavaro, like those of Venezuelan businessman Gustavo Cisneros, who is carrying out a project; of Julio Iglesias and Oscar de la Renta. That area also features the Casa de Campo resort, included for 20 years on the list of the world’s 100 principal resorts.

“Samaná is a destination with a lot of potential, which should have been the first; investments were made in the early 1970s but road works were not executed until 8-10 years ago, which reduced the Santo Domingo-Samaná journey from 4 to 1½ hours. Investments were also made in the infrastructure and in an airport that has given it some dynamism. The area will not have such a mass flow of tourists as Punta Cana, since the hotels have less density, but they are presently receiving a considerable affluence. In Samaná there are important places like Las Terrenas, Las Galeras or Playa Rincón –the latter considered among

TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

the world’s 10 best, although it is still a virgin area, with a great deal of potentials, since it lacks tourist development in terms of rooms and facilities.”

Because of its attractions, more thought is being given to ecotourism in Barahona. Some of the outstanding places are the Enriquillo Lake, one of the Caribbean’s largest; the forests of the Sierra de Bahoruco, several rivers and the Bahía las Aguilas beach, “one of the most beautiful in the country, where we have great expectations and there are debates on whether construction is carried out outside the area to protect the environment. Important investments Eng. Luis Maldonado, Counselor of the have been made like the María Montez Airport, but this has to Dominican Republic Embassy in Cuba. be accompanied by the incorporation of new rooms, an aspect that will have to be intensified.”

Regarding the means of maritime transportation, Maldonado said: “Almost all those destinations have marinas with a high affluence of private yachts, fundamentally in Bávaro-Punta Cana, Casa de Campo and even Boca Chica, where the nautical club close to Santo Domingo with the biggest activity is located, which is part of the infrastructure created to attract certain segments of tourism, a very wise move.”

The Dominican Republic receives cruise ships through three terminals; Samaná, where there was a considerable investment and, because of its dynamism, has increased the docking frequencies; Puerto Plata, which has decreased as a consequence of what I previously explained; and in the Port of Santo Domingo, part of which will be turned into the future Sans Souci Tourist Port, with its totally changed vocation, since it will be limited to the reception of cruise ships to thus increase the frequencies and offer other tourist services. This investment is made by the country’s principal private group, which has links with the tourist sector.

“Broadly speaking, these are the perspectives of the Dominican tourist destinations. Some things will have to be improved, but the hope of doubling the number of tourists depends a great deal on the investments and the constant promotion, as has been done in recent years, whose results are already being seen in the increase of arrivals. In addition, we have worked to create the country image, all of which has helped to position the country as one of the principal tourist destinations of the Caribbean.

“We consider that more than a competition between the region’s destinations what we have to do is a united work to offer the multidestination option. Thus, whoever comes to the Dominican Republic could also visit Cuba, Puerto Rico, Jamaica or other Caribbean islands,” Mr. Maldonado concluded. ■

Samaná is a destination with lots of potential, plenty of famous places and virginal areas.

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

The southern state of Quintana Roo, with its marvelous Riviera Maya, has a high growth rate.

■■ Dr. Miguel Alejandro Figueras■ Professor of the University of Havana. Cuban National Prize for Economy in 2007

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hen dividing the region into four large subregions, we see that they move differently, two at a standstill or semistandstill, Mexico and the Caribbean, and two with a high dynamics, Central America and South America.

Mexican tourism is at a standstill. However, its southern state of Quintana Roo, with its marvelous Riviera Maya and its diversified Cancun, has a high growth rate. The second airport in terms of passenger traffic, the first in international passengers operates there and receives more than 30% of Mexico’s tourist income. Therefore, there must have been a backward step in the arrivals of international tourists during the last six-year period in other Mexican regions. Cancun was the star in the 1970s; the Dominican Republic in the 1980s; Cuba in the 1990s; and the Riviera Maya has been so in the first decade of this century.

From where do the visitors to the insular Caribbean come? Around half of them from the United States, about 20% from Europe, a bit less from the Caribbean and the rest of America and around 10% from Canada. If we add the Mexican Caribbean to the insular Caribbean, the fact stands out that the Spanish Caribbean (Quintana Roo, Dominican Republic and Cuba) has been the shining star, a dynamic part since the mid 1980s to date. A key factor was the Spanish hotel chains, which have invested a great deal of money and, above all, sounded off with a system of Sun and Beach All-Inclusive hotels.

In the first decade of this century, international tourism to Central America grew at rates that surpassed three and four fold those of the Caribbean. It cannot be forgotten that in this subregion the bases for a very diversified product can be easily combined: splendorous nature, mystical and historic Mayan ruins, beautiful beaches, abundant fishing, marvelous sites for scuba diving and good connections with many airlines, among them Copa and Taca. If Central America were to continue growing at the rate of the last 10 years, in the second decade of the 21st century it will tend to equal the insular Caribbean in the reception of international tourists.

Inter-American Tourism and Multidestination Tourism

destination left only four airlines functioning (Cubana, Aeroflot, CSA and Iberia). This was one of the reasons why international tourism in Cuba disappeared during the 1960s.

U.S. airlines are a key factor in the connection between Caribbean islands with international tourism.

In the last six-year period, South America increased at an annual rate of 6% in arrivals; it was the subregion that registered the highest growth in tourist income, at an annual rate of 11%. Of the 21 million foreign visitors who increased arrivals in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2005-2011, South America is responsible for 11 million of them.

Is there an inter-American tourism?

Yes, but it is weak. It should be stronger, but there are weak points that don’t help. In a great deal of the countries international tourism is built on the binomial tour operators of developed countries + national travel agencies and tour operators. The U.S., Canadian and European tour operators are interested in sending their tourists to our destinations and make the maximum of profits. The Latin American and Caribbean tour operators are few, weak and professionally not very efficient. The rest of the infrastructure does not complement them.

Air connections between the Caribbean islands are very deficient. The U.S. airlines are decisive. If American Airlines decides to suspend its flights to one of these islands, it will probably liquidate international tourism in this destination. Cuba has sufficient experience to tell about when the economic blockade and the ban on travel by U.S. citizens to this Subregion Mexico Caribbean Central America South America

Arrivals 2005 (M) 22 19 6 18

Multidestination tourism: the unfulfilled promise Multidestination tourism is probably an unfulfilled promise. Developing it was logical.

But its results have been meager in the Americas. Why? ▶▶ Political will and business interest is required to foment it. Thousands of hours have been spent in conferences, workshops and conventions, where the politicians and those responsible for the tourist administrations in Latin America and the Caribbean have invested time and effort, but little has been achieved. ▶▶ The tour operators on which this region depends are not interested in the complexities inherent to the implementation of the multidestination modality. ▶▶ Our travel agencies and tour operators prefer the large masses of tourists traveling to All-Inclusive Sun and Beach resorts than attending to small groups that come in special conditions from a destination and that in a few days will travel to another. ▶▶ The boom in the last 20 years in cruise ships is a strong competition for tourism of multidestination stays since, although limited, the cruise passenger is a tourist who in a week visits four to five destinations. ▶▶ While the national leaders of the tourist administrations defend multidestination, other important figures of their governments who would have to authorize reduction in taxes and in the cost of tickets, the subsidizing of the first stage of flights between the destinations or simply getting a visa are not of the same opinion. ■ Arrivals 2011 (M) 22 21 8 26

Growth rate 0,0% 1,7% 5,0% 6,0%

TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

Mexican Caribbean Champions Sustainable Tourism

The Mexican Caribbean continues being one of European tourism’s favorite Mexican destinations, and because of this the conservation of its biodiversity has become a fundamental link in the development of that strip’s tourist sector, towards which they are making many efforts.

In fact, the Planning, Design and Sustainable Construction Guide for the Mexican Caribbean, whose principal objective is to orient investors on fundamental aspects that should be taken into account with respect to the natural surroundings and regulations, has the aim of fomenting sustainable and convenient practices in the planning and construction of tourist real estate developments on the coast of the state of Quintana Roo. This seeks to generate, on the one hand, certainty in the security and protection of the economic investment of the buildings and, on the other, the conservation of the environment and the natural surroundings that characterize that region.

Mexico’s Riviera Maya, which expects to cater to some four million tourists in 2013, consistent with the opening of new domestic flights and the increase of international frequencies from London, Paris and Russia, according to official sources, is at the vanguard of the initiatives that guarantee the sustainable development of tourism in harmony with the environment and its cultural heritage.

The Tourism Initiative of the Mesoamerican Reef, promoted by tourism services providers of the Riviera Maya, aims to minimize the negative impacts that the so-called leisure industry could generate on that reef system, the largest of the Atlantic Ocean and second worldwide –with a length of more than 643 km, it extends from the Yucatan Peninsula, to the south of Mexico, passing by Belize and Guatemala up to Honduras.

Another aspect that has had wide media coverage has been the recognition by the Mexican Institute of Standardization and Certification of the Riviera Maya’s effort in the cleaning up of beaches, which allowed it to renovate its certification of Clean Beach for the next two years. In general, Quintana Roo is marking its advance in the cleaning up of beaches, basins, aquifers, lagoons and wetlands and in the preservation of the native ecology.

Meanwhile, the Cancun-Riviera Maya Clean Beaches Committee has worked based on 10 strategic indicators regarding the coverage of sanitary sewer systems, waste water treatment, efficiency in the operation of treatment plants, the quality of the water of the beaches, recreational beaches with public toilets, management of solid wastes, efficiency in public management, promotion of research, efficiency in the execution of actions and certification of beaches. ■

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

The San Francisco de Asís Basilica served as the principal temple of the Anglican Church.

English Presence in the Caribbean: a History Imprint ■■ Dr. Jos Luis Perell■ Doctor in Economic Sciences.

Master in Tourism Management. Professor of the Faculty of Tourism, University of Havana.

Consultant National Chamber of Tourism of Honduras (CANATURH) and International Center of Havana (CIH)

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he realities of the peoples and nations of the Caribbean Basin are very different despite sharing common problems. The political, ethnic and cultural diversity of the region of the Greater Caribbean has its origin with the arrival of Christopher Columbus on October 12, 1492 to the island of Guanahani, at that time named San Salvador by its discoverer, and today located on the Bahamas. The subsequent expeditions took place to Cuba and Hispaniola, presently shared by the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Their travels and discoveries continued in subsequent years, thus giving Spain the biggest military and territorial power of its time.

These discoveries stirred up the interest of other European States, like England, and they gradually started establishing themselves in several Caribbean islands. Already by the mid 17th century they had decided with great tenacity to dismantle the Spanish dominion in the Caribbean.

Later, with the consolidation of the English monarchy, plus the new economic system implemented by France, Spanish power began ceding autonomy and domination in the Caribbean region. The British influence fostered an English-speaking island attitude, self-excluding for centuries, which marked great differences with the Spanish, French and Dutchspeaking Caribbean.

Old engraving that illustrates the capture of Havana by the English in 1762.

This notable certainty was accentuated in Jamaica, Barbados, Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, Saint Kitts-Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Antigua and Barbuda; in addition to Cayman Islands, Turks and Caicos and the British Virgin Islands –the three latter still belong to the United Kingdom. The English imprint spread throughout the region, challenging the decadent Spanish empire.

The largest of the Antilles, the island of Cuba, did not take long in being influenced by the British. On June 6, 1762, a formidable navy squadron commanded by British Admiral Pockock presented itself at the entrance to the fortified bay of Havana. The Count of Albemarle, at the head of the troops, landed the following day through the area of Bacuranao and Cojímar, and after 67 days of siege the English took over Havana. The British occupation lasted 11 months, which if they had perpetuated it would have changed the course of history.

In the 11 months of English domination, George Keppel, Count of Albemarle, took

over the post of Captain General and later his brother William. These governors effectively and perseveringly fought against the enormous administrative corruption that had characterized the Spanish colonial authorities.

Meanwhile, by giving Havana the freedom to trade, freeing it for a while from the Spanish commercial monopoly, made the natives see the wealth and possibilities of these lands.

From there on the Cubans would fight to obtain from Spain the necessary concessions.

It was England, according to illustrious Cuban historian Emilio Roig de Leuchsenring, which gave way to the economic and cultural flourishing that Havana and all of Cuba enjoyed during the first years of the 19th century and at the same time contributed to the awareness of the independence struggles that characterized that century.

The English imprint in Cuba was perpetuated with the introduction of the Anglican Church using the San Francisco de Asís Basilica as its principal temple. In the summer of 2001, 239 years after the English entered Havana, the 14th Count of Albemarle, Rufus Keppel, got married with Anglican rites in the Havana basilica to recall the first Anglican ceremony that was attended by his ancestor the admiral, Lord Georges Keppel, Count of Albemarle.

The year 2012 marks the 250th anniversary of the English presence in Cuba: the Taking of Havana by the English. Today, British tourism is considered among Cuba and the Caribbean’s principal tourist markets. The tourist offer should create the bases for a cultural tourism that transmits the centuries-old ties between these nations. ■

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

Jamaica: More Than Two Million Tourists Up to Date in 2012

From January to August 2012, Jamaica received around 2.2 million tourists and an income of 1,480 million dollars, for a 3.4% increase as compared to the same period in 2010, Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett announced.

The arrival of cruise ships increased 13.6% in the first eight months of the year. ■

Some 200 Cruise Ships to Cross the Panama Canal this Season With the passage to the Atlantic of the ship Coral Princess, of the Princess Cruises Company, the Panama Canal opened its locks for the 2012-2013 season, when some 200 cruise ships are expected to cross through this interoceanic sea route.

Jaime Castillo, specialist with

the Marketing Research and Analysis Office of the Panama Canal, indicated that the majority of the vessels that sail through the area cover more than 10-day journeys.

Other smaller cruise ships like the National Geographic Sea Lion and the Wind Star, which make

short trips, will also cross the isthmus on route to the Caribbean and Central America. Ships of the Holland America Line, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line and Carnival Cruise Lines companies will use the canal this season, according to Castillo. ■

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

The Caribbean in the Olympics ■■ BA Guillermo Bentez Saz■ Journalist of the Sports Staff of Cuban Television

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he 30th Olympic Games (London 2012) undoubtedly was the most important multidisciplinary world sports event held in the last four years.

A total of 204 nations went to the British capital from last August 12 to 27 to fraternally measure their strength in the 26 programmed sports, and among these there were 18 countries from the 31 that make up the Caribbean.

The performance of Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt and Cuba’s ascent from 28th to 16th place, as the leader of the Caribbean nations, peppered this geographic area’s performance.

Bolt was the Caribbean’s topmost gold medalist with three titles, winning in the 100 and 200 meter sprint, as well as a member of his country’s 100 meter relay team, together with Yohan Blake, Nesta Carter and Michael Frater, which set a new world record of 36.84 seconds.

The Cuban delegation, meanwhile, won five gold medals through its shooter Leuris Pupo, judoka Idalys Ortiz, wrestler Mijaín López and boxers Roniel Iglesias and Robeisys Ramírez.

The other Caribbean nations that won gold medals only achieved one and they were the Dominican Republic, which ranked in 46th place; Trinidad and Tobago in 47th place; as well as Bahamas and Grenada, both ranking in 50th place.

In these cases, the performance of Dominican sprinter Félix Sánchez should be highlighted, who reestablished himself and won a second Olympic gold medal, after the one he

won in Athens 2004, in addition to becoming the oldest runner, at 34, to win a gold medal in London 2012.

Others who marked a difference were Trinidadian Keshorn Walcott, winner in javelin throw; the Bahamas 400 meter relay team, made up by Michael Mathieu, Ramón Millar, Demetrio Pinder and Chris Brown, which set a national record of 2:56:72 minutes, as well as Grenadian Kirani James, winner in the 400 meter sprint.

The countries that again were included in the table of medals were Cuba, Jamaica,

Cuban Leuris Pupo surprised everyone after beating best rapid-fire pistol shooters of the world.

Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago and Bahamas, and on this occasion Grenada and Puerto Rico were able to join the much-longed for list.

If we compare the table of medals with the previous Beijing 2008 Games, the Caribbean countries surpassed their performance in medals and amount of nations included on the select list.

The number of gold medals was 13 as compared to the 10 won in the Chinese capital; in the silver medals they descended from 18 to nine; the same in the bronze, in which they achieved 14 after having won 15 in Beijing.

It is interesting that despite there being a quantitative descent in the number of medals, 36 in London and 43 in China, qualitatively speaking their performance was superior since they won three gold medals more at the recently concluded games in the United Kingdom. ■

Usain Bolt was the Caribbean’s topmost gold medalist in London 2012.

Caribbean Tourism Organization joins International Council of Tourism Partners Caribbean Tourism Organization joins International Council of Tourism Partners alliance as a destination member, according to a report of Travel Daily News International.

The representation of the Caribbean Tourism Organization is vast and includes: Anguilla, Antigua&Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermu-

da, Bonaire, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Nevis, Puerto Rico, Saint Lucia, St. Barthelemy, St. Eustatius, St. Kitts, St. Maarten, St. Martin, St. Vincent&the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad&Tobago, Turks&Caicos, US Virgin Islands, and Venezuela.

The Caribbean Tourism Organization exists to increase significantly the inclusion of the Caribbean region in the set of destinations being considered by travelers. Its mission is to create and manage the partnerships necessary to increase the purchase of travel to and within the Caribbean that results in sustainable economic and social benefits for its people.

The CTO, with headquarters in Barbados, comprises 32 member countries, including English, French, Spanish, and Dutch countries and territories, as well as private sector allied members.

These include the Caribbean Hotel Association, companies, organizations, and persons providing products and services to the Caribbean tourism industry.

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hose seeking tranquility and relaxation can find in Cayo Guillermo the ideal option for their vacations in the Jardines del Rey destination, to the north of the central province of Ciego de Avila, some 380 km east of Havana.

We’re talking about Villa Cojímar, recently renovated to expand its accommodation capacities, improve the infrastructure and renovate the hotel’s image, the first to be built on Cayo Guillermo.

This three-star All-Inclusive installation is named after the small Havana fishing town where U.S. writer Ernest Hemingway used to dock his yacht Pilar.

The rooms located by the seashore were renovated, 54 new standard accommodations and eight junior suits were built, all of them located in double Brazilian-style wooden cabanas.

It also opened a mini club with independent swimming pool, the beach thatched-roof restaurant was redesigned to accommodate more guests, the Italian restaurant was renovated and the snack bar was completely restructured.

Villa Cojímar is a hotel of the Gran Caribe Hotel Group that harmonizes with the nature of the area where it stands.

Villa Cojímar, a Getaway to Paradise It has 280 rooms, all with air conditioning and telephone, satellite TV, safety deposit box, hairdryer, minibar, private bathroom, terrace and a view to the sea.

Four restaurants, the same amount of bars, Internet, a variety of sports, many entertainment options and wedding planning services

are some of the facilities for those who choose this hotel to vacation in Cuba.

Villa Cojímar will soon open a kitecenter for lovers of one of the extreme sports that attract the most followers worldwide.

In this way, those who practice kitesurfing will have here an access area for the takeoff, maritime safety and qualified personnel.

The stretch between Pilar and Los Perros beaches is a privileged area for practicing and learning kitesurfing because of the direction and force of the winds, not very deep waters, the tides’ behavior and the height of the waves. ■ Villa Cojímar *** Address: Cayo Guillermo Jardines del Rey, Ciego de Ávila, Cuba Telephone: (53 33) 30 1712 Fax: (53 33) 30 1725 Email: esp.ventas@cojimar.gca.tur.cu www.gran-caribe.cu

Visits to Cuba by Foreign Tourists Grow Arrival of visitors to Cuba from the five principal issuers.

January-August 2012

A total of 2,210,649 foreign tourists traveled to Cuba between January and August 2012, 5.2% more than the same period last year, according to the latest official available figures of the National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI) at the close of this edition.

The 17 principal issuing markets were, in that order: Canada (39.9%), United Kingdom (5.1%), Italy (3.8%), France (3.7%), Argentina (3.7%), Germany, Russia, Spain, Mexico, Venezuela, Holland, Colombia, Chile, Peru, Switzerland, China, Brazil and Belgium.

Cuba’s tourist authorities have forecasted that this year the number of travelers would reach 2.9 million; the sector aims to reach in the future the three million visitors. ■

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

Blue Diamond to Continue Growing in Cuba Marina Gaviota Cayo Las Brujas will increase to 200 its mooring spaces.

Investment Projections in the Cays North of Cuba Frank P. Oltuski Rodrguez, Marketing Vice President of the Gaviota Tourism Group, gave a lecture on the future development of the tourist product in the cays to the north of Cuba –to reach more than 45,000 new rooms between the Villa Clara cays and Cayo Coco, Cayo Guillermo and Cayo Sabinal– at the inaugural session of FITCuba 2012. Given its interest, TTC is publishing a summary of that information.

“I

n the Villa Clara cays we will continue the construction of hotels until in 2017 we reach a total of 13,093 rooms. Close to Piedra Movida and in Cayo Santa María, works began in the area of Lagunas del Este, a hotel development that will include five five-star hotels, with a total capacity for around 3,620 rooms, which should be finished completely in 2016,” the vice president of Gaviota said.

In Cayo Las Brujas, another five hotels will be built –two four stars and three five stars– that in all will incorporate close to 2,762 new rooms, a tourist town with SPA services and a golf course on terra firma, close to Caibarién; moreover, the Marina Gaviota Cayo Las Brujas will increase to 200 its mooring spaces.

Parallel to this, projects include: developing the support, communications, water supply and electricity infrastructure; expanding the transportation services by incorporating new yachts and catamarans and building a new highway that links Santa Clara airport with the causeway to the cays of Villa Clara.

“But the expansion plans go beyond that, to the north of the provinces of Ciego de Avila and Camagüey… by 2015, in Cayo Coco and Cayo Guillermo a total of 3,452 new hotel capacities will have been concluded,” Oltuski announced.

Two hotels are being built in Cayo Coco and close to 2,268 new capacities will be

completed in three four- and five-star hotels. In Cayo Guillermo, two accommodations will be built in Playa Pilar –around 500 five-star deluxe rooms; and three fivestars in Punta Alegre– some 1,162 rooms. In Cayo Paredón Grande the development of seven hotels with 3,200 five-star rooms is previewed, which will be gradually built until 2017.

Regarding the complementary offer, the development of two tourist towns is previewed, one in Los Flamencos (2013) and another in Punta Alegre (2014); and in Cayo Coco, the building of an international marina in the area of Bautista, with 300 mooring spaces, while the ideas for a dolphinarium and a golf course are being developed.

To the north of Camagüey, Cayo Cruz will be the scenario where the Cayo Cruz –Cayo Guajaba– Cayo Mégano Grande destination will be developed, with a total of 9,250 rooms; and in Cayo Sabinal, there are plans for 14,485 rooms.

“These new projects will be supported by an increase in the road infrastructure and the services that will allow access from the Jardines de Rey and Camagüey international airports, as well as the supply of water and electricity and the establishment of a new information and communications network,” Oltuski concluded. ■

Memories Paraíso and Azul.

Blue Diamonds Hotels & Resorts currently manages five Memories hotels in Cuba, with a total of 3,373 rooms: •• One in Varadero, four stars, the Memories Varadero with 1,035 rooms •• Two five stars on Cayo Santa María, the Memories Paraíso and Azul complex, with 1,386 rooms •• Two on Cayo Coco; one four stars, which is the 328-room Memories Caribe, and one five stars, the Memories Flamenco, the latest incorporation in February, with 624 rooms.

As a novelty, starting December 1 the chain’s first Royalton Hotel will open its doors on Cayo Santa María. A Grand Luxury boutique hotel with 122 rooms, top quality services and installations, not to mention its exquisite gastronomy, for which “we have hired an internationally renowned chef to give the special touch we need in our restaurants,” Maite Medina, marketing director Cuba, said to TTC. Medina added that “our hotels” management team in Cuba is undergoing changes in its structure, headed by Mr. Fazwi, and the favorable changes have immediately started to be seen in all the installations, thus ensuring the success of the next winter season. Projections… are always being brought up and, of course, we will continue growing extensively on this marvelous island.”

TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

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British Market Operators for Caribbean Destination Among the tour operators that market the Caribbean region in the United Kingdom, those that stand out for the diversity of their offers, types of products and amount of destinations where they operate are Thomas Cook, Thomson Holidays, Virgin Holidays and The Holiday Place, according to information on their websites.

The Thomas Cook portfolio includes Cancun, Cuba –Morón, Havana, Caibarién, Santa Clara, Minas, Ciego de Ávila– and the Dominican Republic –Palo Bonito, Bayahíbe, Boca de Pantanal, Bavaro, Los Ranchitos and Puerto Plata.

Meanwhile, Thomson Holidays extends its portfolio of offers to Antigua, Bahamas, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Jamaica, Tobago, Turks and Cai-

cos, Barbados, Cuba (Cayo Santa María, Havana, Holguín and Varadero), Dominican Republic (Puerto Plata, Punta Cana, La Romana and Samaná), Jamaica and the Mexican Caribbean.

Barbados, Antigua, Saint Lucia, Jamaica, Bahamas, Tobago, Cuba, Mexican Caribbean and Grenada, plus St. Maarten and Turks and Caicos, for some nautical activities and adventure, are destinations in which Virgin Holidays operates; and Antigua, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Jamaica, Cancun, St. Kitts-Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tobago, Turks and Caicos, are offered by The Holiday Place. ■

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

Trinidad and Tobago Celebrates 50th Anniversary of Independence ■■ Her Excellency■ Dr. Jennifer Jones-Kernahan■ Ambassador of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in Cuba

T

rinidad and Tobago, after a long and oppressive history of slavery, colonialism and neo-colonialism, hoisted the symbol of its sovereignty, its national flag, on August 31, 1962, under the leadership of Prime Minister Dr. Eric Williams.

From the depths of a savage, brutal, discriminatory and racist society a strong Caribbean people has emerged, capable of facing the inevitable challenges and constraints in order to forge together, institutions such as Cuba, CARICOM and ECLAC, which defend the principles of independence, social justice, peaceful co-existence, collaboration and fraternity.

The achievement of this milestone has inevitably generated in the hearts and minds of our people a state of sober introspection, a level of intense analyses of our unique multicultural national identity.

We celebrate our Caribbean identity, forged from the love of liberty on the part of our first peoples, Amerindians, Caribs, decimated but never destroyed. The first peoples have survived and today their cultural traditions are part of our identity as a people.

We celebrate our identity forged in the fires and trials of our ancestors: those brought in chains from Africa, bought and sold like chattel, their very humanity denied.

But who can chain Man’s love of Liberty?

We celebrate those brought from India as indentured labourers, and have survived discrimination and oppression to define their place and contribution to a new Trinbagonian identity.

Indeed, in the words of one of Trinbago’s outstanding poets and protagonist of the genre of poetry called Rapso, Brother Resistance: “We’ve been oppressed for a very long time but we never surrendered”.

Our collective retrospection allows us to revere the memory Hyarima, Hero of Amarindian resistance.

We remind our children of the Camboulay riots in the early 19th century when afro Trinidadians defended their right to celebrate their traditional streets parades, and of the massacre perpetrated against Indo Trinidadians in 1884, who defended their rights to religious freedom.

We celebrate our national identity moulded and shaped in the struggle of our people in 1937, led by our National Hero Tubal Uriah “Buzz” Butler, political leader of the British Empire workers and Citizens Home Rule Party, and militant Trade Union Leader, whose anti-colonial movement rocked the foundations of Brit-

The Trinidad Carnival is the greatest show on earth.

ish colonialism in Trinidad and Tobago and in the West Indies, and whose legacy is a strong Caribbean Trade Union Movement.

Our national pride and national identity has been nurtured by committed nationalists and internationalists such as George Padmore, acclaimed after his death as the father of African Liberation; such as Stokely Carmichael also known as Kwane Toure, a militant protagonist in the civil rights movement in the United States in the 60’s and 70’s, credited with having coined the phrase Black Power; and by African Prince Daaga, leader of the Action Joint National Committee, who served as inspiration for a profound social-cultural revolution in the 70’s.

But our history shows that our independence of thought and action, our ideals and pursuance of social justice and equity, of economic and political independence has never been in question, and has never ceased.

Today our multiculturalism identity is symbolised by the Steelpan, a versatile, amazing musical instrument, the only musical instrument invented in the 20th century and developed in spite of the full force of colonial terror.

It is symbolised in our autochthonous music, calypso, a traditional expression of resistance, of our hopes and dreams and our vision for a better world.

Our identity is crystallised in the multitude of genres of musical expression of our multiethnic family, calypso, soca, classical Indian music, chutney, chutney soca, parang, soca parang to name a few.

Our national identity is expressed in our national observances of various religious and cultural traditions, as attested to by the fact of our many national holidays. Not many countries have more than we do.

Our national identity is reflected in our multicultural expression of the Trinidad Carnival, the greatest show on earth, our most important export which for many years has been celebrated by patriots, and coverts abroad in major cities of the world.

The Embassy of Trinidad and Tobago in Cuba, with the support and collaboration of the Ministry of Culture, the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the People and Randance Show, is proud to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the independence of Trinidad and Tobago, two islands, one nation. ■

Today our multiculturalism identity is symbolised by the Steelpan, a versatile, amazing musical instrument.

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

N E W A I R C O N N E C T I O N S I N T H E C A R I BB E A N

Condor Incorporates New Destinations in Mexico After signing an agreement with Mexico’s Volaris, Condor has incorporated new destinations in Mexico: Mexico City, Guadalajara, Puebla and Toluca via Cancun; from Madrid, Barcelona or Bilbao.

New Flights to Guyana and Barbados from Suriname Caricom Airways plans to start regular services to Guyana and Barbados from its Surinamese hub next December. The airline operates charter flights to several Caribbean destinations: Anguilla, Barbados, Grenadines, Dominica,

Grenada, Montserrat, Nevis, Saba, Saint Eustatius, Saint Kitts, Saint Maarten, Saint Vincent, Trinidad and Tobago.

More Cubana Airlines Flights Cubana Airlines will operate nine new flights between Argentina and Cuba during the 20122013 peak season; four of these air links could become regular flights and it plans to reach the destinations with the highest demand among Argentine tourists: Havana, Varadero, the cays to the

north and Holguín. Eight of the frequencies will depart from the Buenos Aires Ezeiza International Airport and the other from Córdoba or Rosario. Moreover, the airline announced it will extend its services in the Caribbean and Central American regions.

Europe-Cancun Connection Expands The French Corsair airline has started two weekly frequencies between France and Cancun, which have joined the Air France KLM and Virgin Atlantic opera-

Havana.

tions, which has announced the start of a third flight from the United Kingdom in April.

Interjet Connects Monterrey and Havana The Interjet airline recently opened a direct route that will be covered with two weekly frequencies, Thursdays and Sundays, between the Mexican city of Monterrey and the Cuban capital.

The flights will be carried out on A320s with capacity for 150 passengers.

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

■■ Frank Martin

A

placid fine sandy beach that can be in any of the 12 nations making up the English-speaking Caribbean is not just a reason to go on vacations in these states. It is also a basic and crucial product for the fragile economies of the area.

The leisure industry, in the midst of the global crisis affecting the world –the rich countries issuers of tourism as well– already proved to be a sort of cornerstone for those paradisiacal islands that if withdrawn by some giant hand would cause a human disaster of biblical proportions.

But the English-speaking Caribbean, made up by Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Kitts-Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago, has no plans to change tourism for some other national resource. The situation would not allow it.

Rather, the islands with populations that range from 2,825,928 inhabitants in the case of Jamaica, to barely 52,000 in Saint KittsNevis, are well prepared to fight to attract –at times at all costs– international tourism.

Five years ago, in 2007, the English-speaking Caribbean and the states of this tropical sea already gave the definitive momentum to the hotels with the “all-inclusive” system, especially the Spanish headed by the Meliá chain. But the palm trees are for cruise ships, at whose service, with increasingly greater enthusiasm, the ports of the English-speaking Caribbean are placing themselves.

According to official Panama Canal statistics, no less than

English-Speaking Caribbean Still Confident of Its Beaches 200 large recreation ships passed through its locks during the 20112012 cruise season, with a total of 220,000 passengers.

The islands are struggling to attract to their ports, to get additional “spills” of income, the world’s largest ships of this type and are not disoriented. Cruise ships, worldwide, expect to transport 17 million persons in 2012, which would be 4% more than in 2011. The figure is right if it is taken into account that 415 million tourists traveled through the planet from May to August 2012, despite the crisis.

The Caribbean, no matter what language it speaks, also seems more aware that in unity lies the

force to attract more tourists. For example, the 16th Tourism Mart held last June in the Dominican Republic bet on “a solid multidestination Caribbean strategy”.

Though this is not, in the least, a recent effort.

The region’s tour operators still remember the so-called Single Domestic Space that united a dozen English-speaking countries during the World Cricket Cup, a sport inherited from the British: Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts-Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago and Dominica.

This space was in force from January 15 to May 15, 2007 and made

The English-speaking Caribbean is looking forward to cruise ships with increasingly greater enthusiasm.

it possible for foreigners to freely move throughout those states after completing the immigration paperwork in the first port of entry. Undoubtedly, a risky initiative in the face of times of risk.

Life for the English-speaking Caribbean –as well as for the other islands on that sea– is not easy, and it is not expected to be at least in the near future. A newspaper from the area, Antigua Sun, recently said that the region is still placing its development in the hands of the prosperity of tourism, but, cautiously, it recommended that the governments should take advantage of other opportunities “beyond” the leisure sphere. An editorial by this publication said that tourism is like a backup platform for the area’s continuous challenges in its development. It quoted in this sense a report by the entity Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) which underlined that the regional governments’ current concerns include migration, increasingly more complex commercial relations with the world and the support provided by tourism.

Economists in the area believe that an important factor in that regional situation is the need to develop the services as an important source of income. This will be possible only if the region moves beyond tourism to take advantage of opportunities in the area in terms of financial and banking services, the editorial recommended.

However, this is asking for the impossible. That is why, the islands continue, as centuries ago, scanning the horizon to see the life-saving ship, currently the large floating hotels with passengers full of money. ■

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

Hoteles C Improves its Hotel Portfolio in Cuba

Hotel Presidente.

Hoteles C will participate in another edition of the World Travel Market from the Cuba stand, where it will hold meetings with the principal British and international tour operators with the aim of improving collaboration, as well as making new contacts to increase the flow of clients to our hotels in the marvelous Cuba destination that, year after year, continues providing a wide range of cultural options as well as multiple leisure and entertainment activities so that their visitors can enjoy an unforgettable stay.

Arenas Doradas Hotel.

We have currently restructured our hotel portfolio in Cuba to offer the best to our dear clients. In the Havana tourist destination we manage the Presidente Hotel, which still has the charm of the 1920s in its recently remodeled installations and has the assistance of a qualified staff whose principal characteristic is its kindness and dedication.

We also manage in the Varadero tourist destination the Barlovento, a cozy hotel very well positioned in the markets, because of its proximity to the center of Varadero as well as its pleasant and

attentive staff, and the Arenas Doradas, a hotel resort that has had 100% of its rooms and installations renewed and offers its guests a diverse variety of new services designed to satisfy the most demanding clients, also with a humane, familiar and welcoming team, internationally renowned.

At present, Hoteles C is carrying out multiple works to expand, in Cuba as well as in the rest of the Caribbean, in order to continue offering a quality and personalized service and a familiar treatment to make you feel we are always Close to you… ■

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

Global Distribution Systems (GDS) in Cuba ■■ Dr. Jos Enrique Salgado■ Permanent Professor, University of Havana

T

he GDS, electronic distribution giants in the travel and tourism sector, make it possible for online and traditional travel agencies to book flights, hotels, cruise trips, insurance, car rentals and other services –associated to a number of passengers; they process billions of these electronic transactions every year.

“The GDS model emerged in its time as an ‘adder’ of all the contents, and the fact that an agency can have online and electronic access to multiple suppliers turns it into a model fully in force and, moreover, very efficient,” Luis Maroto, CEO of Amadeus IT Group, affirms.

Cuban suppliers in the GDS Cuba has achieved a significant growth of “a responsible, non-pollutant and sustainable tourism” that “guarantees peace, health security in the environment-friendly context.” The attributes of the Cuba Destination, authentic, rich and diverse, will attract this year close to three million visitors who place it among those with the highest demand in the Caribbean, which requires a more efficient electronic distribution strategy.

Since 1993 Cubana Airlines distributes its flights in Amadeus, one of the four greats worldwide, and is today a Systems User, which contributes other marketing and price advantages. Ninety-nine percent of the visitors arrive in the country by air and the GDS publishes the content of all the airlines that fly to the island.

In 2007, the offer of the Cubanacán, Gran Caribe and Islazul hotel chains joined Amadeus, as done by international hotel chains in Cuba like Meliá and Accor (through their headquarters’ contracts), while the Habaguanex and Palco hotels are published as part of subscribed “consolidators” in the GDS. More than 70% of the country’s hotels are in the European GDS. Bookings in Amadeus are headed by the Hotel Nacional de Cuba. Other accommodations could be added in the future, including those of the private or autonomous The luxury Star Clippers cruise company announced it will include Cuba on its routes starting 2014. The firm, one of the world’s most important, announced that its routes will touch Cuban ports with exploration programs and visits to beaches, colonial cities and the possibility of visiting, before or after the cruise, Havana.

sector. The content incorporation of car rentals, bus transportation, insurance companies and other local suppliers is also expected.

Cuban travel agencies in the Amadeus GDS Travel agencies are the third link in the global distribution chain. Amadeus has signed agreements with Havanatur and Cubatur –the first travel agencies in Cuba subscribed to a GDS– to use the Amadeus Selling Platform (ASP), the application for agencies most used in the world (present in some 90,000 travel agencies and more than 62,000 airline offices).

ASP allows agents to: ▶▶ speed up sales through a single point of access to all rates, ▶▶ optimized business processes and personalization possibilities, ▶▶ bookings in more than 425 airlines, 287 hotel chains, 103 railroad companies and 20 car rentals worldwide, ▶▶ integral and global offer to its clients, including those of corporative and multidestination trips, and ▶▶ 365x24 access to the Data Processing Center of Amadeus in Germany.

Amadeus’ distribution and business model has many advantages for Cuban entities, since it guarantees access to the technology and systems of world leading GDS with total security and availability.

Integration of GDS and Internet Technology has driven everything toward an open and global environment on the Internet, has generalized protocols and modified the established business regulations.

In terms of conceptualization, all the agencies’ transactions through GDS (including the ones on line) as well as those on the websites of suppliers, are company-level electronic trade types (B2B) or for tourists (B2C).

Amadeus bases its electronic distribution platform on a centralized Multichannel Distribution System so that the content published in the GDS can be reproduced on the webs of the suppliers, seeking the most efficient channels in each case.

For example, Cubana Airlines carries out around 12% of its bookings on its web through an interface with the GDS. The hotels and agencies have the same possibility of integrating Amadeus tools on their webs, allowing them to increase online sales maintaining a balance in the costs and according to the return forecast. Everything cannot be booked on line.

The integration of the direct online channel (airline, hotel and other suppliers’ websites) and the indirect channel (traditional and virtual travel agencies clients of the GDS) is an essential factor for a successful electronic distribution strategy in Cuba, that responds to the demand, of the foreign market as well as of the growing national market. ■

Star Clippers to Include Cuba on Its Routes Star Clippers will initially have four routes of this type that will cover a sailboat, the Star Flyer, a fourmast ship built similar to former clippers and with a capacity for 170 passengers.

The journeys have been programmed starting February 2014 and will allow for choosing between 6- and 14-night cruise trips that link Cuba with other Caribbean nations.

The news responds to a new initiative of the shipping line to exploit the tourist attractions of Cuba, Jamaica and the Dominican Republic.

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TRAVEL TRADE CARIBBEAN • YEAR XII • NO. 214 • NOVEMBER 2012

A distinctive climate and an impressive cultural, ethnic and historical diversity, make the Caribbean one of the preferred places in America. Photo: Hoteles C.

Tourism for the Caribbean Economy Today the tourist industry is for the economy of the Caribbean countries what the sugar industry used to be during the 19th century.

The gradual transformation of the Caribbean economies in favor of the tourist sector was fundamentally seen starting the second half of the last century. However, together with the arrival of these new possibilities, a risk inherent to this emerging sector was introduced in the region’s economic sphere: the dependence on favorable conditions and not on the principal issuing countries.

In the first decade of the new century the principal issuing markets for the region have been the United States with 48.3% of the visitors, almost half of the total visitors; Europe with 27.8%; and Canada with 6.2%. Although the issuing of U.S. tourists continues being a majority from a regional perspective, we can find countries whose reception fundamentally comes from Europe, as is the case of Cuba, Curacao, Barbados, Guadeloupe, Martinique, the Dominican Republic, Antigua and Barbuda and the Netherlands Antilles.

The special climate characteristics of the region, the impressive cultural and ethnichistorical diversity of the majority of these

Mexican Caribbean Beach Hotels the Best

■■ Julio Antonio Gmez■ Professor of the Don Fernando Ortiz House of Higher Studies, University of Havana

enclaves bathed by the sun and warm waters, make the Caribbean one of the favorite spots in the Americas (the second tourist destination after North America); for more than a decade many of its countries have been exceeding the one billion dollars in income.

Despite this, the Caribbean region is still not among the principal regional destinations worldwide.

The dependence on the leisure industry for the economic stability and growth of the area determines the need for diversification strategies and the transformation of proposals for users who are increasingly more demanding in terms of destinations and qualitatively superior experiences. The growing complexity of contemporary man who is completely immersed in the so-called post-modernity is waiting for formulas that will meet the desires that were undreamed of only some decades ago.

Offering our visitors the magic reality dormant at times in the daily life of these lands

The Riviera Maya and Cancún beach hotels are among the first positions in the raking of the Insiders’ Select 2012 list, drawn out by the Expedia on line travel agency.

and eluding as much as possible filling with mercantilism our tourist horizons, would be a beneficial goal.

In terms of the level of income that the Caribbean has been able to generate in recent decades from the tourist sector, it is satisfactory, keeping in mind that its fundamental weakness lies in the imbalance between the higher growth in the percentage of rooms than the growth of the effective reception of tourists.

The countries that register the most rooms are the Dominican Republic and Cuba with more than 42% of the regional total, which emphasizes a certain margin of inefficiency due to the incongruence between the growth in rooms and the real number of visitors. This gap has been compensated for thanks to the increase in the average yield per tourist.

In the contemporary world, where the study of the leisure industry has become indispensable to understand society, the course demanded by millions of users each year has to be drawn up according to the role that these consortiums assume as responsible for the expansion of a greater wellbeing that aspires to integrality. ■

This list includes the world’s best hotels available on the company’s portal, which are classified according to the guests’ evaluation on the quality of service and value for money they offer.

The winning hotels include the Fairmont Mayakoba in Playa del Carmen (Rivera Maya) and the Westin Lagunamar Ocean Resort Villas, in Cancún.