Despite the United Kingdom’s (UK) recent update to its travel advisory warning British citizens about increased crime levels in Barbados, bookings to the island remain unaffected thus far, according to Ryan Forde, Chief Executive Officer of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA).
“We haven’t seen any impact as yet in terms of bookings,” Forde stated when asked about the potential effects of the updated advisory. The BHTA chief expressed confidence that the Ministry of Tourism and the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. (BTMI) were actively engaging with overseas partners to address concerns and communicate the safety measures being implemented by local properties.
The UK government updated its safety and security advisory last Wednesday, cautioning British tourists to exercise extra care when visiting Barbados due to what officials described as an increase in violent crime on the island. The updated UK advisory specifically warned of several types of violent incidents that have occurred in Barbados, including armed robbery, sexual assault, gang-related shootings, and carjackings.
Forde acknowledged that the advisory “raises some lights” and emphasised the need for increased caution, similar to destinations worldwide. However, he stressed that the association continues to work closely with local authorities to ensure both communication and protection for residents and visiting guests.
Great job
“We do a great job already at the hotels in terms of communicating the best places to go, safe locations in terms of lighting and we also help invest in that kind of infrastructure to make sure that it’s a safe and enjoyable experience,” he explained.
Additionally, Forde stressed the organisation’s commitment to ongoing collaboration with authorities to maintain Barbados reputation. “We will continue to work with the authorities in any way that we can to make sure Barbados continues to be the paradise destination of choice,” he said.
In response to security concerns, he revealed, “we are doing a lot of training with our security teams and our guest services teams throughout the year. We are working closely with our police liaison officer and his teams in order for us to make sure that we stay guarded and we stay on point.”
Looking ahead to the winter season, traditionally Barbados’s peak tourism period, Forde expressed optimism about booking trends.
“Winter is looking good as usual, so that has been positive,” he said, pointing out the island also experienced a successful summer season, with June performing better than in previous years.
While awaiting final numbers, Forde said the BHTA’s data represented only member properties, adding the association anticipated additional growth from non-member hotels and new properties opening after the summer season. (DDS)
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