Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association President-Elect Gregor Nassief says Dominica must place greater emphasis on increasing visitor demand if it hopes to maintain and expand airline services to the island.
His comments follow the announced withdrawal of Caribbean Airlines from the Dominica route and concerns surrounding seasonal changes to other regional and international air services. Nassief argued that while air access remains important, the long-term success of any route depends on whether airlines can consistently operate profitably.
“Having an airport doesn’t mean that planes will come and having a new airport doesn’t mean all of a sudden that Canada and BA and Virgin will suddenly arrive here,” Nassief said. “These are for-profit companies and they will only service routes if it’s profitable for them.”
According to Nassief, Dominica should focus on generating stronger visitor demand through coordinated destination marketing efforts involving both the public and private sectors. He said airlines are more likely to maintain routes when passenger load factors remain consistently high throughout the year.
The tourism executive noted that the loss of Caribbean Airlines services could have implications for travel between Dominica and Trinidad and Tobago, a market that has traditionally supported tourism, education and business travel.
Nassief also used the opportunity to call for broader reforms to regional travel, arguing that high taxes and inefficient connections continue to limit movement between Caribbean destinations.
“One of the real frustrations of persons involved in tourism is that the Caribbean domestic market is really underserved and it has huge potential,” he stated.
He pointed to the growing popularity of multi-destination travel among international visitors and suggested that easier movement between Caribbean islands could create new opportunities for tourism growth across the region.
Tourism Minister Denise Charles-Pemberton has meanwhile indicated that discussions are ongoing with airline partners to address gaps created by recent route changes, while emphasising that increasing visitor demand remains critical to sustaining future air services.
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