by Brian Major
Last updated: 5:10 PM ET, Thu May 2, 2024
Barbados tourism and government officials are riding a wave
of positive deployment trends and initiatives to support cruise tourism to drive
the destination to unprecedented success in the segment in 2024.
Barbados’ 2024 cruise passenger arrivals are poised to
exceed last year’s totals. The main port in Bridgetown is scheduled to host 826,338
passengers expected this year arriving on 338 ship calls. In 2023, the port
hosted 373 calls carrying 661,635 passengers.
This year, Barbados will host vessels from a wide variety of
cruise categories, including large contemporary ships operated by Disney Cruise
Line, MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean, luxury ships from
Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection and Seabourn Cruise
Line, vessels from luxury adventure specialists Scenic Cruises, SeaDream Cruises
and Windstar Cruises and premium-class ships from Holland America Line and
Princess Cruises.
During the early stages of the pandemic, Barbados officials
extended a welcome to cruise ships as other Caribbean ports quickly barred cruise activity on their shores. Under the direction of Mia Mottley, Barbados’
prime minister, island officials played a key role in assisting cruise companies to repatriate
crew and later to normalize itineraries fractured by the outbreak.
“The government did what we believe was necessary on a
humanitarian basis,” said Ian Edghill-Gooding, Barbados’ minister of tourism
and international transport. “Whereas other ports in the region were closed, we elected to
make our decision because it was the right thing to do. That also allowed us to
showcase to the world what we're about as a country and what values we stand
for,” he said.
Cruise companies have since “reached out to thank us
multiple times,” Edghill-Gooding said. “Every time we meet they remind us that we were one
of the ports that allowed thousands of their workers to proceed through our airport
and repatriate.”
Following that period, “We expected more business to come our
way and we're seeing it in terms of the record number of [cruise] passengers
we've seen this year,” said Edghill-Gooding. “This should be a very rewarding
year for us.”
Island Access
Barbados is now engaged in initiatives to build its cruise ship
business, said Andrea Franklin, CEO of Barbados Tourism & Marketing Inc.
(BTMI).
“We are trying to build out the island experience as much
as possible. So yes, we have our traditional beach landscape, but when guests
come and have only one day or night, we want to ensure that they're able to see
our traditional attractions,” she said.
“There are opportunities for them to converse in the
culture and get to meet some people,” added Franklin, “so we're trying our best
to build that out as we go on.”
Franklin pointed to Harrison’s Cave, a signature Barbados
attraction, as an example of the island’s newly enhanced experiences.
The Harrison’s Cave complex was redeveloped after Chukka Caribbean Adventures assumed operation of the historic Barbados attraction. (Photo by Brian Major)
Caribbean tour company Chukka Caribbean Adventures recently
assumed operation of the historic natural cavern, adding adventure-themed
exploration options for spelunkers as well as new natural and cultural elements,
including zip line and ropes courses.
“It is an overall experience where they built a zip line and
nature trails,” Franklin said. “There is a partnership with Mount Gay where persons
can sample their rum, so if they’re not able to get around the island in a day,
they can experience some of our rum culture here,” she said.
“We can offer [cruise travelers] something you know that
they can see what the full Barbados product looks like.”
BTMI is seeking to maximize cruise visitors’ time on the
island by convincing them to return as land-based travelers, Franklin said.
“If you give [visitors] a taste of the island that they
want their cruise, we can then look at how we market to them to come back to
the destination, which is important for us.” she said. “We’re [also] looking at
their spending on the island to be sure we receive the maximum spend.”
“We believe that cruise will continue to be a win-win for
us,” said Edghill-Gooding. “Cruise is
crucial to sustainability of local workers. We're working with taxi operators
right to improve their marketing efforts in an attempt for them to create even
more business products that are marketed personally.
“We are also working with attractions to determine how they
can best improve their [visitor] experience,” said Edghil-Gooding. “On top of
that, we also get feedback from the cruise lines, who tell us what is trending
among their guests.”
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