By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Minister of Tourism yesterday said he was “not concerned at all” about the three-month loss of the Grand Celebration cruise ship, despite fears Freeport has now “hit rock bottom”.

Dionisio D’Aguilar explained his Ministry was optimistic that the business lost from the vessel’s diversion will be offset by increased calls on Freeport from other cruise ships, due to hurricane-related devastation elsewhere in the Caribbean.

Emphasising that the city was already seeing increased cruise ship visits, Mr D’Aguilar told Tribune Business: “We’re not concerned at all, because this is very temporary.

“The ship has been seconded to assist with hurricane relief in the southern Caribbean. They’ve done this before. This is nothing earth-shattering to concern ourselves too much about.”

He added: “There will be some loss of business, but I’m hoping that whatever the loss of business is, we will gain by the detour of cruise ships to Freeport from those more southerly Caribbean countries because they can’t be visited due to hurricane damage.”

Mr D’Aguilar said the cruise lines were already diverting vessels to the Bahamas “of their own volition”, and added: “They know we’re here, they have to find itineraries for their ships, and we’re the closest place to Miami and Fort Lauderdale.

“We’re a natural fit. I’m inclined to think we’re a natural fit when they’re looking for ports to visit. This is what my technical team said, and that’s what we’re thinking. We were already getting detours here anyway.”

Mr D’Aguilar’s comments are unlikely to reassure all Freeport tourism industry participants, especially those in the retail and restaurant sectors, and tour/excursion providers, many of whom have been reeling for months as a result of the Grand Lucayan’s near year-long closure.

Many view the Grand Celebration’s three-month departure until December 23 as merely the latest blow for Grand Bahama, some even going so far as to describe it as “the last nail in the coffin” for Freeport’s tourism.

One Freeport-based attorney, speaking on condition of anonymity, said of the vessel: “That was the last little bit of business Port Lucaya enjoyed.

“We now have no tourism product. I would say that’s the last little piece that was left. That’s all gone, and that’s the only people we had. It’s truly, truly dead now. We could not be worse off. We’ve definitely hit bottom now.”

David Wallace, a principal in the all-Bahamian group that has invested more than $1 million to develop the Pirates Cove Water Theme Park, said the Grand Celebration’s departure would have a material impact as it accounted for 15-20 per cent of the attraction’s customer base.

Estimating that the cruise vessel brought an average 1,700 persons to Freeport from Florida “every other day”, Mr Wallace said around 150 typically visited Pirates Cove.

However, emphasising that Freeport and its tourism industry “can’t give up”, Mr Wallace echoed Mr D’Aguilar’s belief that cruise ship diversions from the southern Caribbean could offset the Grand Celebration’s three-month absence.

Urging the Ministry of Tourism and Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) “to sell Freeport as a destination”, he told Tribune Business: “What I think might happen, while I’m not able to confirm it yet, is the devastation in some of the southern Caribbean islands will open up Freeport to the cruise lines.

“We believe the port of Nassau is up to capacity. We think this is a wonderful opportunity for the Ministry of Tourism and Grand Bahama Port Authority to go out and sell Freeport as a destination that survived the hurricane, and is a port to call on.

“We’re hoping that while the restoration process for those islands begins, it gives us an opportunity to be a port that the cruise lines can visit.”

Mr Wallace said that with the Grand Lucayan’s closure taking out 59 per cent of Grand Bahama’s room inventory, the Grand Celebration had been “picking up the slack, and filling the void”, for local businesses and taxi drivers.

“The Celebration will be missed and we look forward to it coming back as soon as possible,” he added. “We recognise they’re doing humanitarian service, but we’re hoping it returns.

“We continue to be challenged, but we can’t give up. We’ve got to keep going back and look for another way.”

Sarah Rolle, principal of Ocean Motion, a Taino Beach-based watersports business, told Tribune Business that the Grand Celebration’s departure had temporarily cost the island its “main feeder” for the tourism industry for the next three months.

With the vessel operator having previously promised to bring a second vessel to Grand Bahama in April 2018, both she and Mr Wallace expressed hope that its deployment could be advanced to compensate for the Grand Celebration’s loss.

“It’s going to impact us tremendously,” Ms Rolle told Tribune Business. “They really are the main feeder for the island at the moment, both in beds overnight and day trippers.

“What was great about the Celebration is they’re good for the community because the business is spread; everyone is impacted, from the taxi drivers to the maids in the hotel, tour operators and shop owners - everyone gets a piece of the pie. It’s going to be a huge impact on every level.”

Ms Rolle added that the Grand Celebration was also “the main feeder” for the 190 rooms that remain open at the Grand Lucayan’s Lighthouse Pointe property, while providing an alternative means of access to Grand Bahama that countered its high air fares.

“It’s not good news, and the people on the front lines know how serious it is,” she reiterated. “We are waiting to see what else is in the works. We’re hoping we hear something soon, and are also hoping they come back.

“They say they’re coming back on December 23, and were looking at bringing a second ship in April. That was what they’ve put out. It’s a good product, and we are just hoping we can build back up on that product with our location. It’s a good combination.”