By Delvardo Emmanuel
Journal Staff Writer

Tourism, Investments and Avaiation Director General Latia Duncombe touted that
The Bahamas is on pace to reach the eight million mark for tourists arrivals this
year as she revealed that so far, to date The Bahamas has welcomed over 6 million
visitors to its shores.
As World Tourism Day 2023 was celebrated globally on Wednesday, Director
General Duncombe told reporters that the Ministry of Tourism is ensuring that
“Brand Bahamas” is always positioned well.
“We are really pleased and excited about performance. Year to date, August 2023
we have welcomed 6. 6 million visitors to our shores.
“As a team and as an industry, we’re certainly moving the needle forward to ensure
that we achieve, and we are successful,” Mrs. Duncombe said.
Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation, Deputy Prime Minister Chester
Cooper earlier this year said, The Bahamas is on target to hit the 8 million mark.
To achieve these numbers, tourism officials have put in place a comprehensive
marketing scheme to attract first time and returning visitors.
“At the ministry of tourism, we’re structured in such a way with a very diverse
team from the marketing, PR, advertising perspective.
“We make sure that “Brand Bahamas” is always positioned well. And so, whether
it’s visuals that we’re capturing, efforts to ensure that we’re in the front of the right
audiences, making sure that whatever their preferences would be; whether it’s in
the verticals, boating, fishing, diving, romance, any of those particular areas, we’re
able to serve up ads and messaging on an ongoing basis.”
“We have Bahamas tourist offices throughout North America and in Europe; those
teams on the ground engage in face to face discussions with key stakeholders in
market all of the time. They’re all located in key sectors of, the U. S. and very soon
we’re going to be opening an office in L.A as well, which is a very important city
for us.

“So, when we look at it, those boots on the ground they yield results. They meet
with airline partners, trade, travel trade, media all the time keeping The Bahamas
up front and center,” Mrs. Duncombe said.
During his contribution to the 2023/2024 Budget debate in the House of Assembly,
back in June, DPM Cooper said the number of visitor arrivals was up 79 percent
over the first four months in the same period in 2022 and exceeded 2019’s banner
year numbers by 32 percent.
DPM Cooper added that most Family Islands also experienced historic monthly air
arrivals as well at some point during the 2022/2023 fiscal year.