CHTA President rallies regional members

Many of the so-called “big players” in the region feel that they don’t need the help of regional tourism bodies. However, we need to move past competing against each other and start competing against the world.

This was the assertion made at the recently held CTO State of the Industry Conference by Richard Doumeng, President of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association.

Richard Doumeng, President of the
Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association.

Doumeng, who stressed that responsibility for the success of the Caribbean tourism industry fell on everyone’s shoulders, not just those of governments or players in the hotel industry, pushed for countries to invest into the regional tourism marketing fund. He said that he wished to see some kind of formula developed that would bring a determined percentage of the funds coming from the private sector; and on a permanent basis.

The CHTA president, elected back in June, lamented that while some countries had been sitting on resources that could be freed up for the industry’s marketing ventures, emerging destinations had been busy creating their own branded markets, and now were proceeding to devour ours. “We are not competing against each other, we are competing against the world and our number one challenge should be to get people to the Caribbean ... then we’ll fight over what country they would stay at and what hotel. Let’s work together and bring people back to the Caribbean,” charged a passionate Doumeng, bringing much applause from his audience.

Full participation in website needed

He urged his listeners, a wide cross-section of industry stake-holders, to get on board in a more intense way with caribbeantravel.com. The website, an initiative of the Caribbean Tourism Development Company (CTDC)*, allows the independent traveller to book flights and hotel accommodation, as well as find or create their own packages. Yet, according to Doumeng, some countries and hotels were not as forthcoming with information about their brands as he would like to see, thereby missing out on the benefits of being a member.

“It is going to be a benefit for everyone who believes in it and chooses to participate. The Caribbean brand still has a mystic [element about it which] we have not capitalised on.”

He critiqued some of the bigger players within the region who, according to him, said they did not need the assistance of the CHTA or the CTO, highlighting the fact that as big of a brand California or Florida had, both states still rallied together with the other states to bolster the efforts of Brand USA.

“...So the USA has found a way to get California, Florida and Wyoming at the same table together. We should be able to get our largest and smallest players to come together as well, at the same time.”

Doumeng explained that every CHTA member was going to get a free direct link to their property’s website from the CTDC website.

“While I realise we have such a challenge is because I can’t even get active, paying hotel members to give us the information to put on website. I understand your reluctance and trepidation to commit these funds but… I’m asking you to please believe in us and trust us once more as we [fight to] make the Caribbean the number one year-round, warm weather destination by the year 2017.”

*The Caribbean Tourism Development Company (CTDC) is a marketing and business development unit, owned equally by the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) and the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO). (RA)