US Virgin Islands (USVI) Waaxda Dalxiiska waxay qaban doontaa shir jaraa'id Talaadada, Oktoobar 4, 11:35 subaxnimo shirka 40th Caribbean Travel Marketplace ee San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The annual conference is the largest marketing event for Caribbean tourism suppliers and wholesalers and is produced by the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA). At the press conference, the USVI Tourism Department will announce news about its upcoming fall and winter travel season including the highly anticipated reopening of two Frenchman’s Reef’s properties in St. Thomas after a $350 million renovation, the post-pandemic return of its cruise industry, the USVI Charter Yacht Show in November and the popular month-long Crucian Christmas Festival in St. Croix.
“This CHTA event is an ideal forum for the USVI Department of Tourism to announce to the media, to our partners and to industry peers, the progress we have made after the severe economic impact that the pandemic had on our tourism industry and throughout the Caribbean these past two and a half years,” said USVI Commissioner of Tourism, Joseph Boschulte. “We are especially excited to share the news of the reopening of two rebuilt and rebranded properties at Frenchmen’s Reef, restoring our accommodation capacity in St. Thomas to the levels prior to the devastating destruction caused by hurricanes Irma and Maria five years ago.
Boschulte also plans to discuss the upcoming cruising season where he anticipates a significant increase in cruise stops in FY23 with over 450 calls and almost 1.4 million passengers, up from approximately 250 calls and approximately 480,000 passengers in FY22.
This past week, the USVI’s Tourism team also promoted the US Territory at Brand USA’s Travel Week in Frankfurt, Germany. This major travel destination event brings together key travel industry players in the US, UK and Europe to drive further visitation to the United States.
Citing recent research provided by Brand USA, Boschulte said, “Florida and Hawaii are top U.S. destinations for European travelers from markets such as Italy and Germany. Europeans desire to both relax on beaches and experience American culture. They wish to explore historical attractions and have ecotourism options. In Frankfurt, our tourism team demonstrated to the European market that the U.S. Virgin Islands offers a very unique and authentic Caribbean experience on American soil. Additionally, our tropical beaches are not overdeveloped, crowded, and cluttered like some popular stateside public beaches. However, we offer the same types of attractions. Furthermore, Europeans can fly to our Territory in much less time than flying to a beach destination such as Hawaii.”
Both Brand USA and CHTA Marketplace alike, represent two of five major industry events The U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism will attend this fall, underscoring its commitment to a more comprehensive approach to its travel industry, creating a year-round destination for both overnight and cruise travelers alike. The destination is also slated to attend the 28th Annual FCCA Cruise Conference, IMEX America, Routes America 2022 this October.
