By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Cat Island resort operators yesterday branded the lack of same-day air connectivity and high airfares as "definitely a big killer" for their growth prospects and those of the island's tourism industry.

Frank Wolfe, former owner of Shannas Cove Resort, told the Cat Island Business Outlook that long-time repeat visitors are frequently cancelling vacations to the island upon learning they will have to overnight in Nassau given that they have experienced this so many times.

"The big issue is definitely the time of the Western Air flights at 1pm," he said. "That kills a lot of business. There's no doubt about it and nobody can tell me any other story about that. It's fact, an absolute fact, because we know we have people just stuck, just connecting.

"We still have contacts with people coming for a long time. We become friends. They say 'we don't want to spend two nights in Nassau'. It's a big killer, definitely a big killer." Mr Wolfe said concerns over the lack of same-day air connectivity, and the disincentive this provides for persons seeking to travel to Cat Island, has been exacerbated by increased airfare costs.

"I just got an e-mail from someone in Wisconsin, and they said we are planning to come to Shannas Cove," he disclosed. "They said $1,850 was the ticket price. That is ridiculous. I am not a calculator. I can just say what it is: $1,800. I remember two to three years ago that we had flights which were $1,400-$1,500. It is now $1,900. That's a big difference."

Mr Wolfe was backed by Yvonne Rolle, owner of Rollezz Beach Villas, who described the same airfares as offered by Makers Air as "a bit overboard in terms of cost". She added: "Western Air doesn't meet the requirements for the guests coming in, and we find guests just don't want to spend a day in Nassau at all, so we have a problem," she said.

"When those persons book, we know what happens. They invariably turn around and say: 'We have to cancel'. Thank God a lot of them convert to other Family Islands so The Bahamas still gets their business but Cat Island loses out as a whole because when those people don't come to the hotels they don't go to the Fish Fry, don't visit any other establishments. 

"We lose big time. Airlift, airlift, airlift is extremely critical, and then the charters. We know we used to have quite a few charters and it seems like the charters have lessened as well. Airlift becomes very critical in sustaining your business."

Sarah Swainson, private charters and business development manager for Makers Air, yesterday blamed the increased airfares on the new and higher taxes/fees imposed on the carrier and other airlines by the Government.

She told the Cat Island Business Outlook: “One of the challenges I think for us as well is cost. Just as everybody has discussed, how expensive it is to get to Cat island, how inconvenient it is to go through Nassau, all of these different things.

"We're faced with a lot of the same issues. You know, our price increases are a direct result of fees that are passed along to us. I mean, year to year, you do have general inflation and things that go up. However, a lot of that is in response to fees that have gone up for us as well.

“The wonderful part about being in alignment with the Bahama Out Island Promotion Board, we work really closely with tourism. These are all things that are being addressed, and they're being addressed at very high levels. That's one of the great things I got after my Exuma [Business] Outlook appearance. We've had some further conversations about some of those fees," Ms Swainson continued.

"So we understand that the most important part is to get people to the Out Islands in the most comfortable, convenient and safe way, and the most affordable way. And we want them to leave as much as they can on the island and not spend it all on their plane tickets.

"So we will do everything that we can to keep lobbying with everybody from the Out Island Promotion Board, from tourism and all the other stakeholders to make sure that the fees that we're paying are fair. We know we have to pay to fly. We're not expecting anything for free, but we want to make sure that that isn't being passed through and isn't hindering people coming to the island.”

Ms Swainson said that for the period January to September 2023, Makers Air brought 1,685 passengers into Cat Island, but there was a slight decline in 2024 to-date to 1,612. In terms of freight, she said the airline carried 18,260 pounds of cargo into Cat Island from January to September 2023, and 19,521 pounds during the same period of time in 2024.

She added that, in 2023, the airline had seven private charters but this year it has brought nine to Cat Island. Mr Wolfe, meanwhile, said there was a need for Bahamasair to service Cat Island given the national flag carrier's mandate to fly to all islands of The Bahamas.

"They're flying to San Salvador just around the corner," he added. "I know they could combine this. They did it in the past. The thing is really I remember many years ago that I talked to the guys from Bahamasair in our meetings but they didn't want to hear this and it was not possible. Everything is possible."