Friday, October 9, 2009

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Competition churning in the water By INDERIA SAUNDERS ~ Guardian Business Reporter ~ inderia@nasguard.com: The Celebration Cruise line steaming up a route between Nassau and Fort Lauderdale is projecting business will further heat up by December, with new bag and "kids free" policies. It comes as the liner this summer registered a 25 percent passenger base from The Bahamas alone. It's a jump from a more moderate March start that could pose a real threat for higher priced airlines that have seen their domestic passenger numbers plummet in recent months. "It's a really ideal form of transportation for a number of reasons," said Glenn Ryerson, VP of marketing. "We're cheaper than air travel and passengers don't have to worry about paying for bags because it's included and they can take up to five pieces of luggage for free. "While we're happy with the numbers we had this summer, we know that once more people experience it we can expect our numbers to double or triple." It's an upturn the cruise liner is preparing to see this Christmas as Bahamians look to conduct their traditional Christmas shopping spree in Florida this December. The cruise liner now has weekly cruises to and from New Providence and Florida, carrying both Bahamian and foreign visitors in its trek across the waters. Still, the company expects its bag policy will have an added advantage over competitors winging their way to and from the same destinations over the holiday season. Unlike the cruise, most airlines now have baggage policies that can see passengers shelling out extra money for even the first piece of luggage. The move came last summer when unprecedented oil prices drove the price of fuel upwards and consequently, the price of air travel. While Celebration now offers up to five bags free of charge, many airlines, however, have stuck to the luggage policy even after oil prices stabilized in the following months. The rising prices in tickets — coinciding with a similar hike in unemployment — has led to a claw back by many Bahamians in the amount of travel. It's a situation not unique to The Bahamas either, with many North Americans this summer choosing to travel closer to home. In The Bahamas, cruise passengers have largely been the saving grace for a deteriorating tourism product. "Detailed data for the first five months of 2009 showed a modest 1.2 percent increase in aggregate arrivals, supported by a 9.0 percent advance in the larger sea segment, which overshadowed a 14.7 percent reduction in air traffic," read a monthly report from the Central Bank for July 2009. "Disaggregated by port of entry, tourists to New Providence and Grand Bahama grew by 4.0 percent and 1.6 percent respectively, owing to a rise in cruise visitors which offset the downturn in air arrivals." The statement speaks to the increasing popularity of travel by sea. Still, there are some benefits to air travel, say analysts, pointing to the shorter length of travel time — critical to many a Bahamian shopper on a weekend shopping spree. Even so, cruise officials are confident their facilities will add the extra incentive needed to win passengers from their competitors. "The travel is overnight really and unless you're in a real hurry, it's the best way to travel," said Ryerson. "You have a comfortable cabin, all meals in place and casino, so the value is tremendous."