Issues on airlift, infrastructure and intra-regional travel were at the forefront of the Caribbean Tourism Organisation’s Leadership Strategy Conference, held from 8 to 11 October at the Hilton, Barbados.

Willie Walsh, Chief Executive Officer of British Airways, gave a keynote address at the outset that pulled no punches. He spoke of the pressures that the industry was under, particularly with relation to what the aviation industry considers punitive taxation including Air Passenger Duty, levied by the United Kingdom. Walsh said that the amount payable was ten times more than the actual carbon cost of a flight to the Caribbean. He noted there had been a decrease in passengers from the UK since the tax was introduced and said that even if people could find the extra money to pay for more expensive tickets that would be at the expense of tourist spending in their destination.

“It threatens jobs and opportunities – and the ability of the islands’ governments to maintain funding levels for the education, health and welfare programmes they expect to provide for their citizens,” he said.

Walsh lambasted also the ‘patchwork quilt’ of taxes prevalent in the Caribbean and said that policy makers needed to consider the impact of what he termed ‘blinkered policies’ on economies and the environment.

“Aviation is a low-margin industry at the best of times. If surpluses are swallowed up in taxes, airlines will not only be unable to invest in cleaner, emissions-reducing aircraft, they will ultimately go bankrupt,” he said.

In terms of infrastructure Walsh added that Cayman was currently adequately served by its 767 service and that nations and islands should be sensible with what they sought to build, because additional costs from recouping infrastructural developments would further damage travel options.

Regional travel and security

Intra-regional travel was given an intriguing boost by the announcement by AirOne’s CEO Ian Burns that the new low-cost airline would be offering flights starting at $9.99, outside of taxes.

The announcement brought hoots of mirth from some of the assembled delegates, some of whom noted that in the last 30 years, 30 airlines had failed in the Caribbean. Nonetheless, Burns outlined the model, based on European low-cost carriers such as Ryanair, who unbundle all services such as making people pay for priority check-in, baggage and all refreshments.

“We will charge you for everything,” said Burns to a lively audience whose scepticism was palpable. AirOne are awaiting licenses to operate out of Barbados and intend to begin by serving the Eastern Caribbean.

Security issues were also on the agenda, with many professionals calling for the establishment of a Caribbean-wide set of standards to screen passengers through and within the region. It was acknowledged that rescreening between flights was necessary until such a set of standards was implemented. Don Fields of Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said that the United States was looking at introducing a biometric outward screening process.

“When I go to Asia, Europe, South America, I always have to go through passport control when I leave the country,” he said.

However, Alex Sanguinetti, Director-General of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association, said that there was ‘too much harassment’ in travelling through the region and that the Caribbean had to have more common sense in immigration and security policies.

Social media and branding

Other subjects discussed at length included the way that social media had the power to bring together customers and destinations in a dialogue that had never been previously possible. Jim Brody of TripAdvisor moderated a discussion which concluded that the human element was key to public relations and that hotels big and small needed to be present and active online to both respond to and engage with their customers.

“Social media is not a fad, it’s a fundamental shift in the way we communicate,” said panellist Richard Tams of British Airways.

Destination branding must be honest and distinctive, said Tom Buncle, a top consultant in the field. Credibility was key and delivering on promises doubly so. He gave examples of generic marketing campaigns that said little about the actual destinations as they were all simply beach scenes rather than saying something about the specific island. Buncle’s ideas about the future included the possibility of space tourism and other barmy stuff, but in general his presentations were well-observed and pithy.

Finally, new Caribbean Tourism Organisation Chairman Ricky Skerritt laid out three key elements of strategy that would be implemented.

It was imperative, he said, to deliver world-class service, to continue to resist stringent taxes and to properly develop an allied marketing strategy. He said that there had been enough talk and priority was now for action.

“The time is right; the recession has taught that we can do more if we do it together,” he concluded, adding that the conference had been a great success and that tentative plans were in place to do it again in 2011.