POND ISLAND--A group of 130 travel agents from South America recently had a one-day tour of the island via a collaboration of the French Tourist Office and St. Maarten Tourist Bureau (STB).
The visit was part of an annual mega-familiarisation trip hosted by MSC Cruises. This was the first time this island was part of the itinerary. A total of 350 agents were aboard the cruise ship; 130 of them signed up for the general tour. The others opted for private tours or went shopping in Philipsburg.
The touring travel agents were very impressed by the destination’s recovery post-Hurricane Irma and believed the island still has a lot to offer vacationers, said STB.
A number of travel agents are excited by the return of Copa Airlines to St. Maarten so they can start selling the destination again. Copa will resume flights here on June 2.
Tourism and Economic Affairs Minister Cornelius de Weever said on Monday that the visit and coordination between the Dutch- and French-side tourist offices demonstrates the emphasis placed on joint promotion of the destination.
De Weever also tied the visit to Copa’s return: “This will be a significant development, because we also have a number of hotel properties that will be coming back online within the next six-months. These are positive things ... and the future looks brighter each day and month for our island destination.”
