Tourism Minister Ian Douglas has issued a call for Dominica to place its focus on stay over visitors.
Stakeholders in the sector met recently to discuss a way forward for the tourism sector.
“If Dominica is to take advantage of the sector, cruise visitors need to spend more time in the country,” Douglas told the media.
“Cruise is continuing to do very well and it is continuing to surpass our expectations. We have to maintain that, but at the same time we want to look at stay over arrivals because the income generates are very great. We should seek to continue to grow that segment of the industry,” he said.
Douglas said stakeholders are currently exploring various initiatives to ensure that the visitor arrivals on the island improve and the visitors spend more.
“We want to continue to work and build on that because tourism is the driving force of the Dominican economy,” he said.
Tourism industry is growing fast and it is one of the best industry. The tourism industry share lots in the development of the economy of the country.
I FIND THAT MINSTERY TALK IN PLENT THE REST DIE MAN NOTHING NOT HAPPEN IN HEALTH MAN .WHERE HIM HE STILL SETTLE IN MAN. I NEED HIM TO SEND SOME HEALTH POEPLE TO SEE WASTE WATER AND TOILET WATER THAT RUN IN MY YARD BECAUSE THEY DO WANT TO COME ME AND MY FAMILY NOT IMPORTANT SO WE INHALE IT NIGHT AND DAY.I NEED TO SEE HIM BUT HE IN HIDE IN.COME OUT. HE DON’T VISIT HIS POEPLE.HELP US WE WORK HARD .MY KIDS ARE THE FUTURE. WITH THAT HEALTH MATTER THEY WILL BE SICK AND DIE SOON .
Im a visitor to Dominica (three times now) and my only complaint is the airport. Dominica has natural beauty that people pay top dollar to enjoy other places around the world and so many of the other islands have sold off to the highest bidder. Improve the airport so people dont have to take 24 hours travel time to visit and improve local small scale guest houses and boutique style accommodations. That way you Dont sell out to international companies like so many other islands because it only builds wealth for others not the people of Dominica. Dare I say look at Jamaica as an example of what not do.
We need to add a golf course to our tourism product. It’s about time.
I will continue to say that Ian Douglas is simply a joke. Repetition is the order of the day for this minister, and the same for as many as half of them. Ian in several news inserts has only pointed out what Dominica and tourism indistry needs and lacks. He is yet to put forward his own vision or proposals..SHAME ON SUCH A NON VISIONARY MINISTER. Its known to even the ordinary man with no tertiary level studies, many of the things we a missing. so please mr. minister get a plan and then talk to the people until then, as usual, cash your cheque. WITH NOTHING TO SHOW FOR IT
Well at long last…
Now it only remains for you and your colleagues to figure out that stay-over tourist come by air and yachts, and by that i mean an international airport and mariners. All you had to do all the time is look at what works in other countries with a thriving tourism economy.
It is this slowness to comprehend things, that make Dominica is behind our other Caribbean neighbors when we have huge potential even surpassing some.
Now you see the light and understand the role, go do the people’s work and bring prosperity to my people…
Mr.Douglas,
This is good news for us. However I think that there is so much to be done in the tourism industry.
I am a Dominican living abroad and I stayed in a so called Business hotel in Roseau and boy oh boy. The room was clean. the breakfast was another story by itself.
Food presentation in Dominica at the few hotels is unaceptable. The food itself is good.
Mr.Douglas when is Dominica going to improve on their level of service? I woke up on a sunday morning and NO COFFEE. this is a business stay over hotel can you believe it? The butter was in a little silver container covered with wax paper WHAT A MESS! The sugar filled with ants for who to use ME! dO THESE PPL KNOW THAT BUTTER, JAMS, JELLIES, SUGAR AND THELIKES COMESIN NICE LITTLE PACKAGES?
There is no doubt in my mind that Dominica is going somewhere but ALL THOSE INVOLVED MUST GET THEIR ACT STRAIGHT.
i can’t believe the comments by some of u above. gosh man…..can’t we read the nonsense happening. Ian, PM etc…words with no action.
i give up on Dominicans. Please my ppl…don’t gret me anymore. i hate false pretenders.
these guys do not have a plan for tourism, agriculture, enviromental managemen/solid waste, water management, and sustainability. we hungry mr Ian. Today was a boat, yet no economic activites.
God please help us. listen to ur cry ….please. we thank you for the blessing we recieve from you, we want our true endeavors.
Mr.PM to get the visitors stay over for a longer time , we need them to come by air.We need 24 hour airport, meaning night landing. that’s the only way. Visitors by sea don’t stay over you know that, so get air lines to Dominica.We have everything they need in Dominica.You need to look at the VAT Tax. You need to present Dominica in a way that the visitors when they come here,they make Dominica there place to be every year, and make Dominica home for them.Give them change to buy land’s to build houses, so Dominica can work they can’t go with the land, and they will be paying tax.You need to make thing’s affordable, so that you get repeat and new visitors.You need to state thinking of making Dominica a dutyfree county.Think of that Mr. PM.
What we need to know is what is the government’s plan to enhance “Stay Over Tourisit” Government must provide facilitation for the stakeholders to invest or rather show some interest. Year after year we hear the same thing from politicians yet nothing is done. Ian made those very same comments during their last term. This is similar to the sycophant Charles Savrin complaining about delays at the Airport.
At this point in our existence the government does not have to answer to the people ; they do what ever whenever and so many of us are so color blind we can’t even step up to the plate and demand accountability and transparency in government.
Governments come and they go and when they leave some of the cabinet members leave “SET FOR LIFE” and the people remain impoverished. Wake UP my people and demand action and lesss BLAH BLAH BLAHing from people like Ian , Skerrit , Charles , Reginald and others
We need Casinos, Hotels, gentle men clubs and entertainment. When the tourist visits the rivers and mountains in the day, what do they do in the night? When they do that for two or three days, what do they do next? Think about it mr. minister.
stupes……..what? He simply wanted to say something.
Everyone knows that Mr Douglas.
It is there is black and white.
The numbers
the figures
the statistics
Once we have identified our niche, we market there.
We have some home work to do though.
Cause we are still not yet ready and focused for tourism.
We need to educate the population at large.
We need to be more serious about national security.
Our Environment, its conservation, and upkeep.
Litter!
Noise!
Zoning!
Planning!
Come on Mr Douglas, stop playing lip service to the industry, get down to some serious work and lets realise the fantastic tourism potential Dominica has.
Good thinking!
With more emphasis placed on stay-over tourism, we can focus our attention on utilizing more of the Island’s local resources, as well as create more employment opportunities for the natives.
Build the international airport!
Mr. Douglas, we dont need large hotels to turn our people into maids, back to slavery, we need government ai to help the people to develope guess houses of a high calibre, so the money stays in domincan local people pocket.
Let us have a differnt kind of tourism.
eh bien, it take Ian well long to figure that one out…….so long we singing that tune in Dominica! Even little children know cruise tourist don’t spend money….again Ian dog last.
It took you long enough to figure that out. We are also targeting the wrong market. The American market us the wrong market for our product. We need to emphasis on EUROPE. That is the Eco- Tourism market.
On the other hand it is nice that you noticed 14 million Dollars is much less than a 100 and some.
Hotels rooms Mr Douglas?
Stay over arrivals is the way to go,great news for the tourism inductry.