Q & A with Samantha ForsobeChief of the Dominican Republic´s Tourism Office in Belgium and the Netherlands

by Jose Carlos de Santiago

Mrs. Forsobe knows well the Belgian and Dutch tourists who seek the Dominican Republic and has mastery in pinpointing the features of those travelers who prefer this Caribbean destination. About this and other topics, she talked exclusively with Caribbean News Digital.

Q.- How long have you been at the helm of this office?

A.- I´ve been chief of that office from 1999 to 2002, and I returned to it in September 2004. In all, I´ve been in it for three and a half years.

Q.- What was your job in the past?

A.- I come from the Santo Domingo private sector. I used to specifically worked in hotels and airlines in the Dominican Republic.

Q.- What major tour operators do you work with in the Dutch Chapter?

A.- Well, we have a tad more tour operators working with us in the Dutch Chapter than in the Belgian Chapter. We deal with all big-time operators, such as Thomas Cook and TUI. In addition to that, we do business with OAD Riden, Air EK, Hotel Plan, Kuoni and others that are not that big and far-reaching. On the Internet we work with Aratours. Those small-scale operators also function in Holland.

Q.- And on the French-speaking side?

A.- As far as the French-speaking side of Belgium is concerned, we do business with the big guns, that is, Thomas Cook and TUI, plus other tour operators like Exclusive Destinations that´s specialized in high-end tourism and golf travel.

Q.- Are weddings and honeymoons good businesses in the DR?

A.- Oh, yes, at least out of Spain. We do sell quite a number of trips for newlyweds and honeymooners. I must say that honeymoons, not weddings, are bestselling choices.

Q.- How many golfers make it to the DR?

A.- I can´t say an exact figure, but the Venelux event yielded a hundred tourists or so this year, especially out of Belgium and the Netherlands. We´re projecting some 60,000 Dutch trekkers and as many as 40,000 Belgians traveling to the DR in 2006. But only one percent of those trippers are golfers.

Q.- How much money does an average traveler spend in the DR?

A.- Well, Dutch people and Belgians shell out an average $80 a day in the Dominican Republic. I´m talking about average spending, ruling out the price of the room.

Q.- What´s your major concern in terms of marketing for your country. I mean, from Europe? What do you need the most from this world region?

A.- As we speak, the Dominican Tourism Ministry is spearheading the promotion of the country through bills. There´s a publicity campaign underway in the two countries in the form of bills and stickers glued on trams and buses. Nevertheless, we know all along the DR is a hefty market in these two nations.

Q.- How many people linked to the MICE market are traveling to the DR? How many MICE events has your group planned?

A.- I can´t say exact figures, but to the best of my recollection, I guess there were some five or six MICE events out of Belgium in 2002, Basically that´s a ballpark figure. It´s a small market that has made incredible headway, though.

Q.- What Dominican destinations do these MICE groups travel to the most?

A.- Well, we sell overnight stays in Santo Domingo, so that these travelers get a chance to tour the colonial part of town. They generally move to Punta Cana after that. We´re trying to step up the marketing of a far more assorted travel package for MICE groups because we know they could do a whole lot more in the DR.

Q.- What kind of support are you getting from CTO right now and what kind of support do you expect from that organization?

A.- CTO´s Dutch Chapter is, as a matter of fact, as very Dutch-oriented chapter that provides great support for the small islands, like Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao. As to the Greater Antilles, like the Dominican Republic and Jamaica –nations that also belong to the Chapter- I honestly don´t see any real support coming in. And, what kind of support do I expect? Well, I should only ask CTO to give us the same opportunities they give the smaller islands. That´ll do the trick.