Two interesting international events are taking place in St. Maarten during the coming days: The 2019 Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) Platinum Associate Membership Advisory Council (PAMAC) meeting at Sonesta Maho Beach Resort and the fourth annual Caribbean Aviation Meetup CaribAvia at Simpson Bay Resort. Some of their direct benefits in terms of added business probably can be felt beyond the host properties too.
But these gatherings also help cement the island’s continued role as a major player in the region’s hospitality industry. Respectively Port St. Maarten and Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA) on which they focus as the country’s two main gateways are obviously key to that effort.
Moreover, their content is certainly relevant. It remains necessary to stay abreast of trends like cruise lines buying and creating own isolated destinations, keeping most of the earnings to themselves.
The most recent development in that sector is the US Government’s prohibition to call on Cuba. While nobody should want to take advantage of the misery of others, the reality is that passenger ships scheduled to go there may have to be redeployed or require alternative stops on their existing routes.
During CaribAvia the locally-desired US pre-clearance is part of the discussions. The crucial expeditious restoration of the airport terminal to its former glory and getting back to American Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Category 1 status will no doubt be touched on as well.
In addition to promoting convention and other group travel, the very topics of these activities are thus important to the tourism economy and consequently the people’s livelihood.
