By Neil Hartnell

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Bahamian marinas are suffering up to 60 percent sales declines as they brace for a “dismal” winter season following a largely negative Fort Lauderdale Boat Show response to this year’s fee and regulatory reforms.

Peter Maury, the Association of Bahamas Marinas (ABM) president, told Tribune Business that numerous boat owners, agents/brokers and captains attending the annual event, which is billed as the world’s largest in-water show, said they will instead direct their vessels to the southern Caribbean and Florida Keys because this nation is “not worth it any more”.

Disclosing that 18 Bahamian marinas were represented at the four-day Show from October 29 to November 2, he added that “everybody is saying the same thing from the operator side - bookings are down” with revenues off by between 25-30 percent for some locations in the central Bahamas.

The ABM president told this newspaper that Bahamian marinas are now “trying to get whatever we can” for the imminent winter boating season as, in contrast to years past, they are “not sold out” via advance bookings and nor are they “expecting a last-minute surge”.

The negative fall-out is not confined only to marinas, Mr Maury warned, with support businesses such as restaurants, food stores, provisioning services, mechanics, boat and interior cleaners all asserting that “we’re not getting the business”. He added that key documents that enable visiting boaters to clear into and enter The Bahamas, such as the frequent digital cruising card (FDCC) application, are still not online.

Speaking as resorts and marinas return from their efforts to promote The Bahamas in Fort Lauderdale, he told Tribune Business: “We had a booth and the ABM had a booth, and just about everybody that came up was talking about it and gave an unfavourable review.

“A lot of the bigger yachts that we went to that spend a winter in The Bahamas said they were just not going to come and will go to the Caribbean islands, and we had smaller boats telling us they will go to the Florida Keys; the Bahamas is not worth it any more.

“There’s too many regulations, I guess, and with all the fees people feel like they are getting ripped off.” However, the FDCC, which offers frequent boating visitors “unlimited visits for a period not exceeding two years” upon payment of an upfront fee ranging from $1,500 to $8,000, depending on vessel size, has gained some traction with boaters and is seen as offering value.

Yet Mr Maury said the relevant FDCC paperwork has yet to be posted online for easy access. And the introduction of revised cruising permit fees, as well as fishing and anchorage permits/fees, for non-frequent boating visitors has generated negative market sentiment towards The Bahamas especially given the lack of advance warning and consultation.

The boating market, which is seen as attracting high-spending tourists to this nation, could become increasingly important if the US government shutdown drags on and impacts stopover airlift to The Bahamas, but Mr Maury said: “The took something that was good and working and totally confused it.

“Our southern Bahamas marinas are reporting sales are down by 60 percent, and central Bahamas marinas have seen a loss of revenue between 25-30 percent, which means all ancillary businesses - car rental companies, gas stations - are down.

“Bookings for the upcoming holiday, and we had 18 marinas at the Show.. we were together for four days, and everybody from the operator side is saying the same thing: Bookings are down. Some of the southern marinas, and even the Bimini marinas, say they have nothing on the books right now,” he added.

“Even the start-ups specific to the industry, laundry services and carpet services, are down. It’s very destructive. We had lots of start-ups that started when business was good that have now closed, and a lot of captains are saying they’ll go to the Caribbean and other places to find employment because there’s nothing here for them. It’s become very prohibitive to be in the yachting business in The Bahamas.”

While the Ministry of Tourism, in partnership with private sector resorts and marinas, had done its best to promote The Bahamas at the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show, “if the boaters give us negative reviews and tell us they are going somewhere else; to the southern Caribbean or stay in the Keys, there’s no a lot we can do. That’s the experience we had”.

“Normally at this time of year we’re sold out, and we’re not sold out for the holidays,” Mr Maury told Tribune Business. “These boats don’t just show up and book. They have to plan well in advance where they are going to be and the logistics of it.

“Yacht managers have already booked reservations in marinas. We haven’t seen the advanced bookings. These charter yachts and private yachts run as a business; they have management companies… We’re not expecting a last-minute surge or anything. We’re trying to get whatever we can.

“We’re seeing a strong season for the southern Caribbean and a dismal season for The Bahamas, which has upset a lot of us because coming out of COVID we were at the top. The Bahamas set the benchmark for this industry, and then went overboard and it will be hard to get it back.”

Mr Maury said The Bahamas is facing increased competition from the Dominican Republic and marinas being developed on the Pacific coasts of central and South America, and added: “We may see some of that business go away for a while.

“I wish someone would figure it out. It’s a loss of revenue for the country, and in every case the taxpayers bear the burden. The Government has to get their money somehow, and will tax other areas, and that affects us, the citizens.”

A key element in the Davis administration’s fiscal strategy has been to avoid imposing new and/or increased taxes and fees on Bahamian families, likely due to the potential fall-out for general election votes. Instead, the increases have fallen heavily on foreign visitors, and not just cruise passengers but, in particular, the private aviation and boating markets.

Boating industry contacts spoken to by Tribune Business said that, while not opposed to ensuring that visiting boats and yachts pay their fair share in taxes, any increases in fees/levies must be reasonable and proportionate in scale, with the industry properly consulted in advance and informed of changes in sufficient time so that they can adjust. Much of the backlash is over lack of notice and consultation.

The Government perceives the private aviation and boating markets as having deep pockets, and the ability to pay more because users are wealthy. However, this newspaper has been told that both sectors are incredibly fickle and, if participants perceive they are being targeted for taxes because they are wealthy, they have the means and transportation to go elsewhere besides The Bahamas.

Mr Maury told Tribune Business: “When people had questions abut the FDCC at the Boat Show, and whether it was online, the Ministry of Tourism sent them back to us. Nothing has changed since they passed the legislation; nothing has moved forward. 

“I had a 180-foot yacht call me yesterday, and a 140-foot vessel the day before, and I said: ‘Go back to doing it the way you did it ten years ago; all manual’. They said: ‘What are you trying to do?’” The ABM president said that the impact on Bahamian companies and workers, who rely on the boating and yachting trade for their livelihoods, appeared to have been forgotten by policymakers.

“They say these guys are super wealthy and can afford it,” he added of the new fees and permits. “And, when they go somewhere else, they forget about the Bahamians. We should be allowed to work in this industry and country. Everyone from the taxi drivers to boat workers is asking why can’t we get this industry going again?

“We have multiple businesses that are affected by this industry all saying the same thing. It doesn’t make any sense. We’re not getting the business. How do you grow the economy? Even the Bahamian agents are saying it’s becoming harder for them to work. The biggest thing is that if the boats are not here they’re not paying the marinas or using the services.”