St. Maarten has overcome the USVI with passenger expenditure according the BREA study presented on the 4th of October at the FCCA conference in Curaçao. Passenger expenditure totaled 185.40 comparing to the regional average of $97,00.
The survey was taken by 28000 passengers & 8000 crew members.
St. Maarten is one the few countries that showed both an increase in passenger spending and passenger arrival.
Honorable minister Pantophlet stated that customer satisfaction and traffic alleviation will be the main focus in the near future.
These key factors will be crucial in the coming time to continue to secure business growth/ passenger arrivals.
More focus also has to placed on the diversity of the merchandise being sold on the island.
Harbour Group of companies CEO Mr. Mark Mingo stated that the port will continue to develop their product to meet the needs of the cruise lines with quality service and operational excellence while providing a safe and secure environment for our customers.
Mingo mentioned on many occasions that competition is increasing and that a keen eye will be kept on St. Kitts developments. The BREA report also unveiled that St. Kitts passenger arrivals increased by 50%.
St. Maarten has always been used as a model throughout The Caribbean in e cruise industry.
The level of service offered on the various Caribbean islands was also discussed during a panel presentation at the FCCA conference.
It was stated that the Caribbean has to increase the level of service to keep competing with other emerging cruise regions.
Honorable Minister Pantophlet ended by saying that he would like to commend the general population and all stakeholders for their continued contribution to bring us to this level.