Barbados plans to transform its tourism model

Wednesday, December 1, 2021

In the wake of turning into a republic, Barbados will transform its tourism model, expecting to draw travellers all through the year, the tourism minister has said.

Also, the island nation has improved its Welcome Stamp program introduced in the middle of the pandemic. It grants people visas to work remotely in Barbados for one year.

For Barbados, sustainable tourism is an important issue. Senator Lisa Cummins told by mentioning that the country does not want to welcome only the “snowbirds” like UK tourists who rush to the island to enjoy sun during the winter months at home.

“Why would we want to cram two million visitors to a country of 166 square miles over a six-month period when we can spread that out over the course of a year?”

“We don’t want it to get into conversations around things like over-tourism. We don’t want to be talking globally, as our prime minister [Mia Mottley] has about climate action and net zero, when we are ourselves engaging in practices that may or may not be sustainable.”

“We want to make sure that longer stays, more sustainable stays… a longer extended tourism season rather than a truncated tourism season lends itself to the question of sustainability in our industry and of course, diversification, within it,” she said.

There were almost 2,000 new Welcome Stamp applicants in September and October, mainly from the US, UK and Canada but also from countries like Australia, New Zealand and Africa.

« Back to Page

• Celebrating 70 Years: British Airways Avios-Only Flight to Barbados Sells Out in Under Nine Hours

• Barbados Tourism Push: Strategic Outreach at ITB Berlin Aims to Boost European Visits

• Exploring the future with Barbados at ITB Berlin, where tourism trends take flight

• Barbados Tourism Minister Engages Key Cruise Partners to Drive Sector Growth

• Barbados Welcomes Over 200 Global Visitors for Exclusive Sun, Sea, and Slam Bridge Tournament