During the session, an update on the Action Plan and overall performance of the industry were presented
Tourism Corporation Bonaire (TCB) together with its partners, Bonaire Hotel and Tourism Association (BONHATA), Bonaire International Airport (BIA), and the Harbor Master held its first engagement Stakeholder Session of the year.
During the session, CEO of TCB, Miles Mercera, shared the visitor arrival performance overview for the months of January to March of this year, while comparing the results with data from 2019. The results show that the North America seat airlift capacity is below compared to 2019 levels, while the room inventory grew from 1,700+ to 2,800+, which means that there are opportunities for growth. In March, a Bonaire delegation met and had conversations with current US airline, and also potential airlines and discussed the possibilities to start with more direct flights out of the US and Canada. New branding campaigns and strategies including big US activation ideas planned for the summer was also shared with the island partners. An overview on public relations results and plan for the coming months, including additional marketing strategies and co-op plans with different US and Europe partners were also presented. Details on upcoming marketing projects and events such as, Kings of Krioyo, Bonaire Water Bottle, Bonaire Tourism Scholarship Program, Bonaire Friends, Signage Project, Bonaire Yoga and Wellness Week, Bonaire Rum Week, and Marshe di Rincon were also shared with the island partners.
CEO of BONHATA, Veroesjka de Windt, shared updates on the accommodation performance, with an average occupancy of 75% for the months of January to March. In comparison to the same months, 2022 had an average occupancy of 77%. The forecast occupancy for the coming months till July is measured at an average of 59%, while in 2022 it measured at 63%. Additionally, we have measured an improvement in terms of our Average Daily Rate (ADR). The ADR for the months of January to March was $253. In comparison to the same months, 2022 had an ADR of $227. The Revenue per Available Room (Rev Par) for the months of January to March was $189. In comparison to the same months, 2022 had a Rev Par of $169.
COO of BIA, Onno de Jong, shared an overview of the visitor’s numbers of the last months. In 2022, the airport accounted a total of 423,727 visitors, excluding transit passengers. In comparison, 2021 showed a total of 256,748 visitors excluding transit passengers. The airport numbers differ from the results of the Visitor Entry Tax, as a result of BIA counting arrivals and departures, all visitors, including residents, and reports on passengers’ origin of flight. Details on the latest developments at BIA, such as the start of JetAir services from Curaçao/Aruba to Bonaire, wastewater installation, marking applied, AMBU-lift, baggage belt, supervision and management on parking, and expansion security, were also shared.
Harbor Master, Gunther Flanegin, presented the most recent data for the months of January to March. In January, Bonaire welcomed 27 cruise ships, in February 29 cruise ships, and in March 27 cruise ships. The Harbor Master together with a Bonaire delegation participated at the Seatrade Cruise Global, where they had meetings with different cruise lines and greening of the port with Aruba and Curaçao Ports. During the presentation, the new cruise call website, Cruisecall.App was launched, where you can find information on all cruise calls coming to Bonaire.
