Families are the key to future success in the Caribbean, according to Virgin Holidays managing director Amanda Wills.
Speaking at the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association Marketplace in Montego Bay, Jamaica, Wills said the area had failed to market as successfully to families as it had to couples and honeymooners.
Wills said: “We are seeing a lot of growth in the family market and the opportunity for the Caribbean is huge.”
Wills believes that because families book in advance they will be able to budget more effectively for the higher rate of Air Passenger Duty than other markets.
She added: “More than 20% of passengers book within three months of departure and for those people, the deals are not going to feel great any more.”
Meanwhile, arrivals to Jamaica were up 14% year on year in the first 15 days of January. Jamaica tourism minister Edmund Bartlett revealed the figure equated to 10,000 people and $10.5 million.
He said the UK market had been flat for 2010 but described that as a “great achievement considering the downturn in people travelling”.
Jamaica plans to attract five million arrivals and $5 billion in tourism revenue within five years.
To achieve this, Bartlett said casinos and the meetings and events markets would need to play major roles.
Plans to build three casinos look likely to go ahead despite some opposition. The first, in Montego Bay, will be built later this year.