By Sherrica Thompson

Staff Writer

#Barbados, February 24, 2023 – Barbados is set to benefit from a $9 million (about 4.5 million USD) annual boost to its economy soon as the country secured a deal with French airline Air Antilles to increase inter-regional travel.

Starting April 1, the Guadeloupe-based airline will begin new daily scheduled flights between Barbados and Dominica, Saint Lucia, Martinique, and Pointe-à-Pitre in Guadeloupe.

“Inter-regional travel is very important to us at the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc.  (BTMI), and as part of our post-COVID recovery strategy, it was time to look at the best way to increase activity between Barbados and the Caribbean,” the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the BTMI, Shelly Williams said.

She continued: “Currently, Air Antilles offers a service to Barbados of three to four flights weekly, and with a 133 per cent increase in seats, we anticipate incremental economic earnings of BDS $9 million annually.”

Tourism officials in Barbados forecast that Air Antilles airline seats will see a sharp rise from 15,000 to 35,000 annually, with the estimated economic impact deriving from increased visitors, daily spending and travel fees.  They said the partnership will also allow for extended airlift directly to the French Caribbean through Corsair Airline, making connections to Barbados.

Williams said: “This growth in capacity will be supplemented by a high-profile marketing campaign by Air Antilles as well as in-market marketing and promotional activities from the BTMI, to keep Barbados top-of-mind and ensure that we fill these additional seats.”

The BTMI Chairman also noted that in addition to increased capacity, the expansion of Air Antilles service will boost Barbados’ connections into non-traditional visitor source markets, as far as Europe.

“We are especially pleased to deepen relations with the French Caribbean, and this revamped service fits into our overall airlift strategy of increasing connectivity to position GAIA as a true hub of the Caribbean.

“The Pointe-à-Pitre and Fort de France routes connect us directly with France through Corsair.  France is a key market for us as we expand and diversify the places where we do business.  We thank Air Antilles for their continued confidence in the destination and look forward to working closely with them,” Williams stated.

The French airline has been flying to Barbados since February 2017.