Discussions are apparently taking place to find solutions to position vendors in both the Heritage and Redcliffe quays to engage more with cruise visitors, and benefit as much as possible from what is expected to be a bumper tourism season.
This is due to concerns raised by the vendors who ply their trade in those areas, over being unable to properly solicit business from the cruise visitors, as the visitors – who often have pre-arranged tours and other excursions – are picked up and dropped off close to the vessels without being allowed to walk through the shopping areas.
Cabinet Spokesperson Information Minister Melford Nicholas addressed those concerns during Thursday’s post-Cabinet media briefing saying: “I believe the complexities are a remnant of the type of protocols that we had to have in place during Covid.
“[The Ministry of Tourism] is actively engaged with the Ministry of Health in relation to understanding the clearance of craft and how to make it easier for our patrons to be able to engage in what they have come here to engage in.”
Nicholas noted that the issue is not a new one, based on his observations, and suggested that – with the matter now under the spotlight – the affected vendors could benefit from a resolution sooner, rather than later, acknowledging the “need for a free flow of traffic between both facilities [Heritage Quay and Redcliffe Quay]”.
Meanwhile, another important sub-sector in the Tourism industry has also been paid some much-needed attention.
The growth of Airbnb accommodations over the past few years – not only in Antigua and Barbuda, but also around the world – has been astounding, but not surprising, given the rising interest in budget travelling.
However, the sub-sector was largely unregulated for a while, and has faced scrutiny over its economic impact and, importantly, the standards allowed in the properties involved.
Tourism Minister, Charles Fernandez, assured this week that work has been done to further regulate the sector, and raise the standard that can be expected by prospective visitors.
“Well, they have to be registered and we have a team and we are actually looking to up the team to be very, very strict with our inspections and approvals, because what was happening before is persons would advertise something online and the people will come down and they go and see it and it’s not what they saw online, and as a result of that we had problems,” Fernandez said.