Bahamas News
Bahamas Tourism, on Track for Further Expansion
By LINDSAY THOMPSON
Bahamas Information Services
NASSAU, The Bahamas — Key indicators show that The Bahamas experienced unprecedented growth in tourism, particularly in the Family Islands over the past year, and is on track for further expansion.
This was revealed by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation the Hon. Chester Cooper as he highlighted 2024 successes, and shared the 2025 Strategic Plan Update, during a press conference on Wednesday, February 5, 2025.
Held at the ministry’s conference room at the British Colonial, also present were Acting Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Investments and Aviation, Lisa Adderley-Anderson; Latia Duncombe, Director-General, Tourism; Dr. Kenneth Romer, Deputy Director-General, Tourism and Director of Aviation; Dwight Gibson, Director, Tourism Development Corporation; and Anthony Bostwick, Consultant, Downtown Development.
Deputy Prime Minister Cooper reported that at the end of 2024, The Bahamas recorded a record-breaking 11.22 million overall in foreign air and sea arrivals, surpassing the previous year’s number by 16.2 percent and 2019 figures by 54.7 percent.
“This is the best year ever, exceeding 2023,” he said.
Out of that number, foreign air arrivals across all destinations exceeded 1.72 million, equaling arrivals recorded in 2023, and surpassing the 1.67 million foreign air arrivals recorded in 2019 by 3.3 percent.
“December 2024 was the best month ever in terms of arrivals with 1.15 million visitors, posting 14 percent ahead of 2023 and 62 percent ahead of 2019. There was an 8.7 percent growth in air arrivals in Grand Bahama, second only to Abaco with an 11.9 percent growth over 2023. This is cause for celebration given the devastation and heralded a return to pre-Dorian and pre-Covid levels. This is truly a remarkable rebound,” he said.
The above results are notwithstanding the interruptions of Hurricanes Milton, Oscar, and the USA elections, he added.
The 2024 Impact of Cruise Tourism Report by the Business Research and Economic Advisors as commissioned by the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association has The Bahamas ranked as number one in the Caribbean and Latin America in terms of total economic benefit.
“These passenger and crew visits along with additional expenditures by the cruise lines generated a total of $654 million in cruise tourism expenditures in The Bahamas during the 2023/2024 cruise year compared to $405 million in 2018. This is a staggering 61 percent increase,” Mr. Cooper said, adding “Our estimates suggest that when we add direct employment, taxes and levies the overall benefit exceeds $1.25 billion with overall tourist spending in the $6 billion range.”
Notwithstanding this, he noted that the Government has engaged a study to further calculate and examine the economic benefit of the cruise business to the Bahamian economy.
“We were pleased to see the attractions of more than $10 billion of Foreign Direct Investments over the last two years with high-end brands like Montage, Rosewood, Six Senses, Montage, Rosewood, Park Hyatt, Bvglari and Four Seasons Residences.
“This is extremely positive for cementing our reputation as a premier luxury destination.”
He said Tourism is also optimistic of the contributions to be made by Celebration Key in Grand Bahama and the Royal Caribbean Club, which are new investments, slated to come on stream before the end of 2025.
Additionally, the ministry launched the ‘Home Sweet Home’ program which incentivizes vacation rental as a short-term boost to room availability.
“We are pleased to announce phase II of this program that offers grants of up to $10,000 and loans via the Bahamas Development Bank for qualified applicants,” Deputy Prime Minister Cooper said.
As a whole, the Islands of The Bahamas attracted foreign air arrivals services from 23 airlines and air carriers in 2024, representing direct route services from 34 international markets across the USA, Canada, London, France, Italy, Turks and Caicos, Cayman, Jamaica, Cuba, Haiti and Panama.
“While we continue to experience unprecedented growth overall, it should be noted that the largest percentage growth in overall foreign air arrivals, as well as increase in seat capacity, were experienced in our Family Islands,” he said.
Deputy Prime Minister Cooper further noted that Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s, and International Monetary Fund all praised the post-Covid recovery with the latter noting the “remarkable” recovery of the economy “buoyed by a strong increase in tourism.”
He thanked partners and stakeholders inclusive of airlines, hotels, promotion boards, executives and staff of the ministry and the “magnificent people” of The Bahamas who have embraced the mantra that “Tourism is Everybody’s Business.”
PHOTO CAPTION: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation the Hon I Chester Cooper gave a tourism update and projections during a press conference on Wednesday, February 5, 2025 at the ministry’s conference room at the British Colonial. Pictured from left are: Anthony Bostwick, Consultant, Downtown Development; Acting Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Investments and Aviation, Lisa Adderley-Anderson; Deputy Prime Minister Cooper; Latia Duncombe, Director-General, Tourism; Dr. Kenneth Romer, Deputy Director-General, Tourism and Director of Aviation; and Dwight Gibson, Director, Tourism Development Corporation.
(BIS Photos/Kemuel Stubbs)
NASSAU, Bahamas — Caribbean Bottling Company (CBC), local producers and distributors of Coca-Cola and Dasani products concluded their 10 weeklong Twist To Win campaign with four $5,000 Mall at Marathon shopping sprees.
The campaign which was available throughout the entire Bahamas allowed consumers to enter by purchasing a 20oz bottle with a yellow cap
from the following brands: Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola No Sugar, Sprite, Fanta Orange, or Fanta Grape. Each yellow-cap had a unique alpha numeric code underneath which they submitted to the Twist To Win WhatsApp number.
With each qualifying purchase, participants residing in The Bahamas were entered to win instant prizes and into a grand prize draw to win one of four $5,000 shopping sprees at the Mall at Marathon.
Participants also enjoyed exciting instant prizes such as: Airpods, JBL Speakers, premium Coca-Cola merchandise, $500 Visa gift cards and Amazon, Spotify and Apple Music digital gift cards.
Out of 76,000 plus submissions, Brian Bethel, Ashia Demeritte, Merlin Adams, and Taraceta Neely won the coveted Mall at Marathon shopping sprees at the following select stores, Kelly’s House & Home, The Sports Center, John Bull, Brass & Leather, and BTC.
Leading up to the grand finale shopping spree, Coca-Cola hosted a Trivia Showdown with the eight finalists to determine the four winners. Finalists were tested on their knowledge of World History, Pop Culture, Caribbean Bottling Company and Coca-Cola Facts!
After a few rousing rounds of trivia, the four winners were declared after each winning their spot in the shopping spree by answering their questions correctly and choosing the “Grand Prize” Coca-Cola labeled bottles at random.
The morning of the shopping spree Coca-Cola gave the winners exclusive access to the Mall at Marathon and its participating stores before
their usual operating hours. Grand prize winners were greeted with wide smiles from Coca-Cola brand representatives and morning bites before the big event.
At the start of the thirty-minute clock the grand prize winners along with each of their Coca-Cola shopping assistants ran to the various stores collecting items in their arms and carts.
Merlin Adams, a husband and father of four was proud to have executed his game-plan at the end of the shopping spree. With toys, a new phone and materials for his home from Kelly’s, Adams felt accomplished in what he gathered.
Taraceta Neely, a winner from Eleuthera collected beautiful bags for herself and relatives from Brass and Leather and Brian Bethel bought matching athletic and outdoor wear from The Sports Center for his family.
The final winner Ashia Demeritte bought linens and household items in addition to a new phone from BTC right in time for Christmas.
Caribbean Bottling Company is proud to share the real magic of Coca-Cola with the grand prize winners and the may instant prize winners across the Twist To Win campaign. For more updates on new products, promotions, and events follow www.cbcbahamas.com.
Bahamas News
The Coca-Cola Art Project Astonishes Art Lovers at The Bahamas Culinary & Arts Festival
NASSAU, Bahamas — Caribbean Bottling Company (CBC), local producers and distributors of Coca-Cola and Dasani products displayed
their astonishing Coca-Cola Art Project (CCAP), during Baha Mar’s five-day Culinary & Arts Festival. Earlier this year, Coca-Cola partnered with The University of The Bahamas’ Visual Art and Design Department for a culturally rich art competition. UB’s art students were challenged to create pieces surrounding the theme, Bahamian music.
As a result, 20 student works of art were made, with four students declared as winners at the CCAP exhibit opening in Baha Mar’s ECCHO: Art Gallery in August. To recreate the culturally stimulating magic felt at the exhibit’s premiere, the CCAP was featured at the FUZE Art Tent during The Bahamas Culinary & Arts Festival.
Nine incredible pieces of art lined the walls of the Coca-Cola Art Project, four of which included the winning pieces from Jhanaisia Cole,
with ‘Gaulin Bride’; Alyssa Pinder, with ‘Shotgun Wedding’; Nelson Gray, with ‘Untitled’; and Jaela Bowe, with the piece ‘Whims of Obeah, a Folktail’. Additionally, an intimate listening room was built. It displayed students’ artistic processes, UB Visual Art and Design representatives, and a recap of the exhibit opening for audiences.
Art enthusiasts also enjoyed premium limited-edition CCAP keepsakes at the booth. Journals which featured a collage of all 20 student submissions on the front and back cover, postcards with an art piece on the cover along with the student’s name, title, dimension and materials on the back and pens designed with the CCAP’s dynamic logo.
Throughout the art festival diverse groups of people visited the art tent taking in the displays while enjoying the artistic insights from the
listening booth.
Community and culture are always at the forefront of Caribbean Bottling Community, and it was boldly showcased during The Bahamas Culinary & Arts Festival for the third consecutive year.
For more details on the Coca-Cola Art Project, events and new products visit www.cbcbahamas.com today!
NASSAU, Bahamas — Caribbean Wines & Spirits (CWS), The Bahamas’ premier wines and spirits distributor delighted Jollification
attendees with bubbles from their Bottega and Bouvet Ladubay sparkling wines and Besserat de Bellefon champagne lines.
Located in the Monument Circle on The Retreat grounds, CWS transformed The Retreat Garden into a lush lounge with Besserat, Bouvet and their latest product addition, Bottega, during the two-day affair.
The festivities kicked off Friday during BNT Member’s Night. Guests enjoyed exclusive offerings from CWS’s catalogue, offered exclusively to members. Complimentary mixes or glasses on the rocks included El Tequileno tequila, Hard Truth whiskey, House of Angostura rum, Cross Keys gin, Nemiroff vodka and a slew of wines such as Fonesca Bin, Bottega and Besserat.
Guests also savored the ‘Jolly Paloma’ cocktail, an instant favorite made with El Tequileno tequila, Schweppes Grapefruit and Domaine de Paris rose wine. To end the night, guests were treated to branded limited-edition wine tumblers as keepsakes.
On Saturday and Sunday, Jollification attendees delighted in glasses or bottles of champagne and sparkling brut or rosé wines while taking
in the comfort of the chic lounge. In addition to purchasing bottles for onsite consumption, consumers were also able to purchase bottles as gifts whether for themselves or someone special.
The sophisticated “bubble lounge” lounge was decked with velvet couches, gold rimmed cocktail tables, blue and pink pillows, and a white floral branded backdrop created for capturing the perfect picture.
Caribbean Wines & Spirits, a historic partner of the Bahamas National Trust was pleased to support Jollification 2025 to kick off the festive season and share their expansive range of spirits.
To keep up to date with all CWS products and events, visit their website at www.cwsbahamas.com today.
