Get to Guernsey for a tenner?
DESPITE the way that the tourism stats were portrayed by the States this week as a 2% rise in visitors, rather than the reality of a 14% decline year-on-year, clearly this is another economic sector which we could euphemistically say is facing ‘challenges’.
But who do we hold responsible? The Tourism Management Board, the offshoot construct of the Committee for Economic Development; the committee itself; the States as a whole; or, as appears to be the with the island’s gross domestic product and economy generally, nobody in particular?
The main industry representative body and the Economic Development Committee both wanted a standalone organisation to look after the industry. But, of course, they wanted different types of organisation.
The TMB is now responsible for developing the long-term strategy for tourism, working alongside Economic Development. Note the ‘long-term’. But how long have we got?
No doubt driven in part by a terrible year for connectivity, and what online commentators quickly identify as fares being too high to get here, and then ‘nothing to do’ once you arrive, there’s unlikely to be a quick fix.
Unless we want to go really radical? Adopt a Ryanair model for Aurigny, sell holidaymakers the strapline of ‘get to Guernsey for a tenner’ and then let our accommodation providers and natural charm do the rest.