Expanded Air Access Buoys Anguilla Visitor Arrivals

The tiny Caribbean nation of Anguilla has made big strides in tourism development in the past several years, overcoming challenges that include the 2020 COVID outbreak.

Previously reached only via connecting flights, American Airlines late last year launched the first-ever twice-weekly flights to Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport from Miami International Airport.

The Caribbean nation recently eased traveler entry protocols, waiving online travel authorization requirements for fully vaccinated travelers ages 18 and over. The country’s magnificent, uncrowded white-sand beaches, distinctive luxury resorts and multiple fine dining options have made the island a popular spot for A-list celebrities who appreciate its understated elegance.

We spoke recently with Haydn Hughes, Anguilla’s minister of tourism and a veteran Anguilla businessman, politician and tourism official, to discuss the island’s ongoing tourism development plans.

TravelPulse (TP): What did you consider to be your mandate as tourism minister for Anguilla?

Hadyn Hughes (HH): My last tenure in government was as parliamentary secretary responsible for tourism. Since then, I always wanted to attract more air service and improve our infrastructure for obvious reasons. The premier [Ellis Lorenzo Webster] has now granted me that privilege, so I got to work right away.

TP: What was one of the first projects your administration launched?

HH: My overall goal was to redevelop the city center. The Valley [now] looks completely different. It gives Anguilla a different feel, a different look, while it still retains its local character. That was one of the immediate priorities, along with trying my very best to bring international air service to Anguilla, which has been a long-term goal of Anguilla for over five years.

TP: What other projects are underway?

HH: We are working on the redevelopment of the port. As you know we also started on the new Blowing Point Ferry Terminal; that should come online in December of this year. So we're very pleased with the progress there.

TP: There have also been improvements at Anguilla’s Clayton. J. Lloyd International Airport, correct?

HH: Yes, a lot of landscaping and enhancements. We've done a lot of remedial work and the present terminal, but the plan is hopefully, fingers crossed, that this year we can start a new terminal.

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TP: What do you expect to achieve with the expanded and improved facilities?

HH: It’s about trying to improve our own product. The world has changed dramatically. People have traveled all over and see what other countries have to offer, so we have to be better than everybody else. We have to be ahead of everyone else.

TP: Anguilla launched comparatively restrictive entry measures following the COVID outbreak and still admits only vaccinated travelers. How were these protocols developed?

HH: It wasn't an easy route, you know. There was a lot of back-and-forth, a lot of fighting you know, but [the government] got there. We opened incrementally using [scientific] data. Persons know when they come to Anguilla they’re coming to a country that has low COVID cases, whose protocols ensure the safety of the people. They can feel comfortable knowing that you know this is a country that will accept only fully vaccinated travelers.

TP: What tourism success stories can you cite from the period following the outbreak?

HH: One of the things the parliamentary secretary [Quincia Gumbs-Marie] came up with very early, before any other country was talking about it, was the whole idea of digital nomads. She said persons around the world would look off to travel to Anguilla to live and work during the pandemic, knowing that we are relatively COVID-free.

TP: What did you do to launch the program?

HH: We had to work through the process in terms of the legislation and push it through parliament. We have benefited significantly from the digital nomad program, it’s been great, with visitors finding out Anguilla really is the best place to live and work from home.

TP: How have the new direct flights and improved infrastructure impacted the local environment?

HH: The airport is busy every day for the first time in our history. But you know, when we talk about visiting Anguilla it’s a different ‘busy’ because anyone who comes to any beach on Anguilla will still wonder if the island is empty, because they’ll have that beach to themselves.

We’ve had record [air arrival] numbers in January, February and March, and the island still feels like there’s no one here. It’s all about room capacity. When you look at it we have less than 5,000 total rooms.

TP: Is the island’s small size an advantage? How do you view the country’s future with regards to tourism?

HH: We still believe that we need to grow a population a little more. We had about 15,000 people according to the last census. No country grows unless their population continues to grow. But apart from the growth, we want to maintain our character of excellence [and] the culture and character that define Anguilla. We want to maintain who we are as a people.