Arrivals figures are actually worse than they appear
I REFER to the report in the Guernsey Press on 2 August concerning an 18% fall in sea passengers. Mike Hopkins and Paul Luxon will be thankful that the report did not focus on the differences in arrival numbers for 2016 compared with 2014 when the Weymouth route and two vessels were running. For example, if you compare 2014 and 2015 you will notice that there were 35,977 less sea arrivals year on year. If you now add today's news of further falls, year to date, of 30,922, the real picture of what is happening to Guernsey's sea arrivals (and Guernsey tourism) since the introduction of the Liberation becomes apparent.
As an owner of tourist-related businesses in Town, I can confirm that without the cruise liners we would be out of business.
What worries me about this type of headline is that next year we will be comparing the numbers with this year and probably be patting Condor on the back as arrival numbers will be the same as this year.
Come on Guernsey Press, do some in-depth reporting on this matter.
It will not be long before the High Street becomes empty and Guernsey's last few remaining tourist related businesses have left the island.
Who in their right mind will be investing in tourism with statistics like these?
I attended the Visit Guernsey seminar at the end of last year where it is was announced by the Chamber of Commerce that they were looking to increase visitors to Guernsey to 400,000. This now looks like a joke given the air and sea links that we now have and the prices being charged.
ANDY ISON,
Guernsey Pearl.
