The St. Maarten delegation led by TEATT Minister Stuart Johnson (fourth left), at the 2019 Monaco Yacht Show.
PHILIPSBURG--Caretaker Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication (TEATT) Stuart Johnson and other St. Maarten representatives attended the 2019 Monaco Yacht Show last week.
This year’s event has been claimed by its organisers as the world’s largest mega-yacht show. Johnson was invited as a “Chief Guest” and participated in a roundtable discussion at the ACREW IMM Crew Lounge, along with St. Maarten Port de Plaisance Yacht Club representative Jesse Peterson, several mega-yacht captains and other stakeholders in the yachting Industry.
The discussion’s goal was to provide updates on developments in St. Maarten, as the country continues to be of interest to the global yachting industry.
“It is important that updates on St. Maarten’s progress post-[Hurricane – Ed.] Irma are positive. It must be spread whenever and wherever we have the opportunity, as this allows to attract future yachts,” said Johnson.
Johnson also said he would “continue to embrace and support the marine sector on St. Maarten, as it contributes significantly to our economy.”
During the roundtable discussion, Johnson highlighted the Triton Update Online, spoke about current affairs and gave a synopsis of St. Maarten’s activities in the yachting industry in the past six months.
Part of the discussion focused on updating crew members and captains on improvements in St. Maarten since September 2017.
Johnson said he had “a frank discussion” with attendees. He told them the Simpson Bay bridge has already exceeded its lifespan and will need to be replaced.
“Part of the vision for the industry includes widening the channel and making the entry way deeper to accommodate the larger vessels, as more mega-yachts have shown interest in coming to our destination.
“We stressed the importance of having all businesses and marinas fully operational. However, we made it clear that based on our experience with Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017, new developments must be sustainable,” said Johnson.
Some captains had concerns about immigration issues, specifically regarding the clearance of crew members. Johnson informed them of the Immigration Department’s efforts to improve clearing times. He also said more work will be done to improve efficiency, especially where it relates to the B1/B2 visa requirements and other issues that were challenges in the past.
Johnson said some problems, such as those pertaining to cruising permits, should already be resolved. He also said the St. Maarten Tourism Bureau (STB) would continue working on improving the visitor experience for the yachting industry.
Johnson said consideration is being given to beautification projects for Simpson Bay. Some requests made by the captains included adding walking trails through the Cole Bay area, creating other hiking trails and bike-ride excursions, and increasing hotel services.
Johnson said he intends to work with caretaker Minister of Justice Cornelius de Weever on addressing the captains’ concern that the Simpson Bay police dock is closed overnight, from 6:00pm to 6:00am.
The TEATT Ministry will be carrying out an impact study to determine the benefits of the yachting industry, according to Johnson.
“St. Maarten has a great opportunity to expand its marine sector. And through the memorandum of understanding with our counterparts on the northern side of the island, we can create greater links with France to increase yacht arrivals from that region,” said Johnson. He has held an initial discussion with Collectivité Vice-President Valerie Damasseau and said he intends to continue these discussions to determine a way forward.
“To attract tourists, we have to go out and foster relationships, along with marketing efforts, [which] will stimulate tourist movements to our island,” Johnson concluded.
