Q & A with Monique Sibily Hodge, Assistant Commissioner of the USVI Department of Tourism

FITUR 2008 - Madrid, Spain

The U.S. Virgin Islands -comprising St. John, St. Thomas and St. Croix- have long been considered one of the safest travel destinations in the Caribbean. In addition, the small archipelago operates under U.S. laws and regulations, so visitors traveling in and out of the islands are not subjected to the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) that makes mandatory for all American tourists to have valid U.S. passports for Caribbean traveling. About this and other issues, Caribbean News Digital talked exclusively with Monique S. Hodge, assistant commissioner of the USVI Department of Tourism.

Q.- Is this your first time here at FITUR?
A.- Yes, it’s my very first time.

Q.- What are your first impressions about the tradeshow?
A.- I enjoyed it very much. It’s very large, big and beautiful, and I think the U.S. Virgin Islands can do very well here, eventually in the Madrid market.

Q.- FITUR is a window of opportunity open to the entire world, so I assume you’ve had the chance of promoting your islands here and that you’ve made a lot of contacts, haven’t you?
A.- Yes. We’ve made a lot of contacts with tour operators and eventually we could get charter flights into the USVI. We need charter flights to get there as quickly as possible and as easily as possible, so we’re looking into the possibilities and eventually get charter flights into the USVI.

Q.- Do you expect to get a regular flight from any European country?
A.- Yes, hopefully we can.

Q.- Have you had talks with any company that could really do that in the near future?
A.- Yes, we’ve had talks, so eventually we could get something into the USVI. We’re very happy and excited about that prospect and I know the hotels in the USVI will be happy, too, as well as everybody from the tourism industry, and particularly people on the island of St. Croix, which is the one we’re here promoting in this fair.

Q.- What are the top outbound markets for the USVI right now?
A.- From the international market we have Copenhagen which is our largest market right now. We have a lot of Danes coming to the USVI because, as you know, we were once owned by the Danes. Denmark owned us and the U.S. bought the Virgin Islands from the Danes, so a lot of Danes come back and look for the history and want to see where their families were born, so that’s our largest international market right now.

Q.- The USVI, as most Caribbean travel destinations, is a sun-and-beach destination. Are you also involved in the effort of trying to promote the history and culture of your country as many other Caribbean islands are doing?
A.- Not just sun and sand, but also our culture and our history. We have a lot of culture and history in the USVI, so we promote that as well.

Q.- Can you give us a brief idea how flows of tourist from Europe and America are faring now?
A.- We virtually have over one million visitors to the USVI and we have them as cruise passengers as well. We have a large market and we’re the number-one market for cruises, which is St. John, so many passengers come by air as well as aboard cruises.

Q.- Do you believe your visit to FITUR will definitely help expand the markets in Europe?
A.- This show has served to see the potentials of the USVI here in Madrid and in Europe as a whole.

Q.- Do you have a representation here in Europe?
A.- Our representation is in Italy. But eventually we’ll have to so more. We’ll see how the market goes after the show.

Q.- Are you satisfied with your visit to FITUR?
A.- Absolutely, it’s been tremendous for us. We’re very happy and satisfied of what has happened so far.