Source: Date: Updated: |
TheBahamasInvestor.com
Wednesday, January 15, 2014 Wednesday, January 15, 2014 |
Grand Bahama is experiencing a “renaissance,” according to Prime Minister Perry Christie, who says new international flight routes to Freeport combined with the imminent opening of the Memories Grand Bahama Resort and Casino are reviving interest in the island.
With the 503-room Reef Village, set to shortly re-open as the Memories Grand Bahama Resort and Casino, and direct flights from six cities across Canada into Freeport courtesy of travel group Sunwing, the Prime Minister told attendees at the Bahamas Business Outlook this week that Grand Bahama is well-positioned for growth.
“We are looking forward to it being a great success,” the Prime Minister said of the new Memories resort. “We are spearheading a complete turnaround in the Grand Bahama tourism sector.”
The resort has already seen more than 18,000 bookings and is expected to run at at an average of 80 per cent occupancy, he said.
The weekly Sunwing flights begin on Thursday this week and will run throughout the winter.
To ensure a year-round influx of tourists, Christie said there will also be new summer flights from eight US cities to Freeport, run by Bahamasair.
These new routes include Cincinnati, Memphis, Birmingham and Baltimore and will begin flying in May this year.
In addition, the current 400-passengers fast ferry service, operated by Baleria, will be expanded and upgraded to a 1,200-passenger ferry, complete with gaming and dining facilities.
With proposals for “major attractions” being discussed and development in Grand Bahama’s West End “under serious review,” the Prime Minister said that there would be announcements of “further economic activity and expansion in short order.”
“We are confident that we have not only arrested the island’s tourism decline, but we have also placed it on a path of sustainable growth.”
The 23rd annual Bahamas Business Outlook was held at the Melia Resort on Cable Beach this week with the theme Charting the Course for Growth in 2014. Topics discussed included opportunities for growth in financial services, energy reform and agricultural development.
cmorris@dupuch.com