James R HeppleCuracao´s Tourism Executive Director

Caribbeans News Digital talked to this exec about CTO´s doings in Europe, as well as Curacao´s development and growth prospects as a travel destination. Mr Hepple believes, though CTO is doing a good job in Europe, its chapters in there must be reviewed so they improve and expand their work.

By Jose Carlos de Santiago

CND: What do you make of the work conducted by the CTO´s London Office for the rest of Europe?

JRH: That´s a general opinion, not only at the CTO´s London Office, but also the one in Netherlands, another outpost that´s doing a great job. They´re making good contacts with tour operators, with news media, and have introduced new marketing techniques. They´ve got a few challenges to cope with in Germany and France, I mean, the chapters are not working so well and everybody understands they (chapters) must be reviewed. But from an overall standpoint, the CTO is doing a good job is Europe.

CND: Do you think Spain´s FITUR, a fair you´ve already attended, could be a good showcase for the CTO as far as the promotion of its destinations is concerned?

JRH: I agree with you. We all know the Spanish market is growing dramatically. You´ve got some pretty good opportunities. We´ve got a hold on the German and British markets, but we´re trying to lure other segments as well, and the Spanish market is quite a good opportunity for the small islands to put themselves on the map, to show there´s something else in the Caribbean other than the Dominican Republic and Cuba, and that they can enjoy those destinations. I believe this is a good opportunity. I know that last year, when I was in Madrid, Jamaica was also there, and Puerto Rico, Aruba, the Dominican Republic and Cuba. It´s a good opportunity to have a Caribbean Village, taking into account that many Caribbean destinations are interested in the fair.

CND: Curacao is a lovely country on the rise. What investments does it count on right now and for the near future?

JRH: We´re going to have two different types of hotels. As we speak, we´ve got different kinds of all-inclusive lodgings and we have American chains as well: Hilton, Marriott, Howard Johnson. We´re going to have Renaissance, Hyatt and a bunch of very interesting independent hotels. We´re also planning to count on a variety of products you don´t find anywhere else in the Caribbean, like villas and bungalows, which are ideal choices for long-staying guests. We´re also increasing our attractions: new golf programs, scuba diving and stuff like that are catching on pretty fast. The city´s downtown area is becoming increasingly interesting for the rest of the Caribbean and South America, I mean, in terms of shopping, because we have a luring duty-free system. We also have a series of events and festivals, like the jazz and salsa music festivals that take place in August. Generally speaking, we´re offering a long list of activities for the public.

CND: How is the tourist inflow broken down in the case of Curacao?

JRH: A 40 percent hails from Europe, with Dutch travelers leading the pack. The rest is shared evenly among the other markets. We´ve got lots of visitors from Venezuela, Colombia and the other South American countries, as well as from the rest of the Caribbean because they come to our country to get on a shopping binge, so we usually have plenty of U.S. citizens coming in, too. When people visit our destination, they find an assortment of languages, dialects, accents, and that´s because we welcome visitors from all around the world. As we speak, we´re also trying to capture more businesses from North America.

CND: How many visitors do you receive?

JRH: Some 225,000 in all; 90,000 from Europe, 45,000 from North America and 45,000 from the Caribbean. We also receive considerably large flows of cruise passengers, somewhere in the neighborhood of 330,000 from other parts of the Caribbean, Barbados, Santo Domingo and the like.

CND: There are certain problems in Curacao, like security and infrastructure, for instance. What´s your reaction to that?

JRH: As far as security is concerned, there´s a couple of resort areas with pretty good security systems in place. The shopping areas have beefed up security dramatically. However, there´s some level of insecurity, but similar to the one you find in other destinations. Nonetheless, tourists are forewarned not to enter those dangerous areas. By and large, I think our environment is pretty safe and secured. We boast a high quality level and roughly 96 percent of our visitors suggest other sunbathers to travel to our destination. That speaks volumes of how pleased they leave our island.

CND: What is Curacao´s total population?

JRH: Approximately 120,000 inhabitants. It´s a relatively small population.

CND: How many airlines fly to Curacao?

JRH: We have direct flights operated by KLM, Dutch Caribbean Excel; nonstop daily flights from Miami through American Airlines; four flights a week from Jamaica with Air Jamaica, that also covers Trinidad, Santo Domingo, Aruba, Caracas and Bogota. We don´t have flights to or from Aruba, but I think Aeropostal is going to resume the Caracas-Curacao-Havana route.

CND: What do you think of West Aruba, the new airline?

JRH: Well, we´ve seen many new airlines popping up lately and we´re highly interested in new air carriers. For example, Acerca started flying from Venezuela in January, new flights from Trinidad and Miami. West Aruba will be welcomed with open arms as another new airline and we´re pleased with that because that surely raises demand for our destination.