Word quickly spread about a cover charge for the final concert of the 2017 St. Maarten Heineken Regatta (see Thursday paper). While nobody is probably jumping for joy at the prospect of forking over US $20 to get in, reactions were not overly negative.
After all, famous bands like UB40 even in their late years don’t come cheap and spending several times that amount to see such shows is certainly not uncommon. In addition, Sunday evening’s line-up includes a first-ever performance on the island by Grammy Award winner Mýa.
One has to consider as well that admission for the other three nights of entertainment at respectively Princess Port de Plaisance, Boardwalk Boulevard and Kim Sha Beach remains free. This means people who are really unable and/or unwilling to pay the entrance fee can still “get their party on” Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Some might argue that the annual event receives taxpayers’ funds, but so do others that have a similar positive effect in terms of tourism and promotion. Actually getting the money has also proven a challenge in recent years, whereby what was considered a simple subsidy became more complex in the sense that it must be used for specific marketing purposes.
Despite that, the organisation has managed to keep its head above water and continues to offer this by-now-very-popular happening both onshore and at sea, for which thousands of sailors and other tourists will once again visit the island. Getting the public to contribute a mere $20 if they want to see the main acts under these circumstances does not seem too much to ask.
