Submitted by Minister of Tourism Richard Sealy to the British Telegraph – 29 Dec 2009
When someone says “Barbados”, people traditionally think of palm trees, white sand, turquoise water and perhaps someone relaxing in a deckchair wearing a straw hat. Yes, we do have the gift of some very beautiful beaches here but Barbados is so much more than just a tropical island.
There’s a lot going on in a country that’s just 166 square miles in size. Not only is there the landscape to explore from caves to gardens, the natural beauty of the Welchman Hall Gully and our rugged east coast but you can have an activity- filled holiday here, too.
There are diverse culinary experiences to be had, you can go horse riding, learn to surf, watch a major cricket match, go for a hike… all of which can bring you into contact with what, in my view, is still our strongest asset: our people.
They are what make us unique as a holiday destination. Tourists go to Egypt to see the pyramids; to Kenya to see the Masai Mara; to Orlando for Disneyworld. But in every visitor survey we ever run, the answer to “What do you like best about Barbados?” is always: “The Barbadians so warm and hospitable.”
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Since my party came to office in 2008, we’ve been working hard to boost community tourism. With more cultural exchange, our visitors will take home even more memories rich memories that will last them a lifetime.
As part of all this, and after the success of 2009’s Year of the Gourmet, we’re now planning a big food festival for late 2010. The rest of the year, there are regular culinary events such as the weekly Oistins Fish Fry authentic Bajan cuisine in a very relaxed environment, which we’re pleased is hugely popular with tourists and locals alike.
We’re also taking sports tourism to another level, to get people coming here to experience everything from golf to beachand water-based sports (Barbados is also a world-class surfing venue) to large-scale international sporting events.
As part of our Independence Day celebrations late last year, we had Serena Williams over for an exhibition match, as well as the Cricket Legends tournament which was huge and is a precursor to something even bigger this year. Matches from the World Twenty20 Championship in May will also be staged here, as will that tournament’s final.
Then there are the sports that people may know less about. Our number one is, perhaps surprisingly, motorsport, but polo is huge as well we have more polo fields per square mile here than probably any other country in the world. Then there’s cycling and hockey… the list just goes on.
So, you see, there are many reasons why we have the highest rate of repeat visits of any major tourist destination in the world, as high as 47 per cent some years, with many of those people returning 25 or even 50 times.
So, even though we call Barbados a destination, for many of our visitors it has become a home away from home. People just get attached to the place. I can’t blame them.
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