Tourism Commissioner Beverly Nicholson Doty to Discuss Tourism Challenges
and Goals at Senate Hearing on Fiscal Year Budget

Tourism Commissioner Beverly Nicholson Doty, along with senior members of her team, will appear before the Virgin Islands Legislature Thursday to tout the Tourism Department's recent accomplishments, explain plans to attract more visitors to the Territory in the following years, and present the Department's fiscal year 2011 budget.

Nicholson Doty will also discuss challenges to the tourism industry brought on by the global recession, how the global economy has affected the local tourism sector, and her plans to compensate for the downturn.

Since the recession began, Caribbean travel markets have been some of the hardest hit. The U.S. Virgin Islands is working to court potential visitors by emphasizing its strengths as a travel destination: relative ease of travel to Territory, value, language, currency, and no passport requirements from the USA.

While 2009 saw a slight decline in overnight visitors to the territory, the decline was less severe than that experienced by other Caribbean islands and many popular destinations around the world. The drop in cruise visitors to the Territory was steeper, in large part due to the growth of cruise ports in the western Caribbean. The Virgin Islands has managed to maintain market share better than its neighbors, but officials must remain cognizant of larger economic and market trends affecting worldwide travel patterns, and must recognize that through strategic planning, the Virgin Islands can expect to see emerging growth. 

The Department of Tourism has succeeded in attracting niche visitors by getting involved in the promotion of sports and entertainment events. The Virgin Islands government has partnered with several event organizers, and has seen a return on that investment through events such as Paradise Jam, St. Croix Iron Man, 8 Tuff miles, Rolex Regatta, St. Croix Food & Wine Experience, Beach to Beach Power Swim, and the St. John Blues Festival.

The territory's marketing campaigns have also focused on encouraging value-added promotions that offer specific travel packages to targeted demographics. Other campaigns have increased efforts to lure international travelers, especially from Denmark, Canada and Italy. 

The Department of Tourism's website, launched in January 2009, and its Facebook page, have seen steady increases in traffic, most likely due to the department's aggressive marketing. That exposure increases the chances vacationers will select the Virgin Islands as their travel destination. 

Another Tourism campaign has focused on encouraging travel to St. Croix by promoting that island as its own brand and focusing on its unique appeal. This campaign has benefited from partnerships with Delta Airlines and Travel & Leisure magazine.

The Department of Tourism has now hosted events in Atlanta, New York, Orlando and Miami, and plans additional events in Texas and the Midwest before the end of the year. The targeted cities have non-stop service to our islands, or are key feeder cities for non-stop flights. According to Delta Airlines, previous Department of Tourism events in Minnesota and Georgia increased passenger traffic 60 percent this past last winter.

The Department has also worked to raise awareness of the U.S. Virgin Islands by hosting 45 travel writers in 2010. That effort produced over 1,000 articles, worth $8 million in equivalent advertising. Tourism has also sponsored eight radio promotion trip giveaways, and helped land the USVI on the Today Show, exposing the Territory as a destination to 2.5 million television viewers.

During her testimony, Nicholson Doty will explain that to compete in a difficult market, the territory must offer an exceptional product. To better achieve this goal, the Tourism Department has been working to improve customer care and service across the Territory. It has launched a stranded passengers program, placed greeters at all ports of entry, and sent out secret shoppers who analyze service along 10 tourism sectors. Those programs have spawned important improvements through training and tourism awareness campaigns. The Department has also initiated a customer service pledge program, encouraging businesses to pledge to provide superior service. During National Tourism Week in May, the Tourism Department sponsored several community outreach programs and workshops encouraging careers in the tourism industry and service improvements.

In addition to aggressive and targeted marketing campaigns, the department has been working to encourage airlines and other carriers to boost service to the territory.

The cruise industry remains a major focus of the Department, which has been working to ensure St. Thomas remains a marquis port of call, while adding calls to St. Croix.

Tourism has also continued its programs to encourage film production in the Territory.

In the past year, the Department of Tourism has been striving to meet its goals while working to slim its budget. It has closed more than half of its National Sales offices, saving money and improving efficiency. Tourism is also continuing to implement recommendations from a 2009 Inspector General's audit involving how the department manages its bank accounts.

Nicholson Doty is encouraged by an up tick in arrivals in the first three 2010 fiscal quarters, and is optimistic that the economic recovery will continue without another downturn. As the recovery takes hold, the Department of Tourism is focusing on efforts to maximize return on investment by hyper-targeting specific travel demographics, forging partnerships with travel operators and using social media to keep the USVI in the public consciousness.

To maintain these efforts, the Department of Tourism requires a budget of $3,412,886, a reduction in almost $320,000 from its 2010 budget. Sixty percent of the requested funds will go to personnel costs. In addition to its allotted budget, the Department has been appropriated $650,000 from the Tourism Revolving Fund for the operation of Carnival and Festivals.

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