Entire article is below...one interesting part of the article mentions, " Royal Caribbean officials, said Mr Peet, "have agreed in principal that the time has now come for tourists who come to Coco Cay be given the real Bahamian experience by having them come over here and be involved in tours, sharing Bahamian cuisine, and arts and crafts that you have right here in Great Harbour Cay starting in a matter of months."
Great Harbour Cay, the Berry Islands — Another Royal Caribbean cruise liner is to stop at Coco Cay boosting visitor arrival to this vacation destination to nearly 15,000 passengers per week, Labour and Immigration Minister Vincent Peet said.
And, tourists are being encouraged to visit the other islands that comprise the Berries, particularly the main island, Great Harbour Cay, the capital of which is Bullocks Harbour, he told residents here on Friday.
Mr Peet, the Member of Parliament for North Andros and the Berry Islands, urged residents to prepare themselves "for the influx of tourists" by enrolling in courses offered by the Ministry of Tourism.
"The Royal Caribbean people have no intention of going anywhere soon," he said. "They want to expand their investment here. They have full confidence in the people and government of The Bahamas.
"They are more excited now than they ever were. They know this is their best destination. And because they want to put more emphasis here, the time is right for Berry Islanders to be able to share in this expanded opportunity to empower yourselves economically and learn to work together as a team."
Already five Royal Caribbean liners stop at Coco Cay each week.
During ceremonies celebrating the 26th anniversary of the R N Gomez All-Age School, Vernita Rolle, the lunch lady, was honoured for her "unselfish contribution" to the school and students.
The news of increased tourist arrival was welcomed by chief councilor Mrs Christine Saunders and R N Gomez's principal Cleveland Ramsey.
"It is exciting to have these ships coming and bring all these tourists here," said Mrs Saunders. "The spillover coming into Bullocks Harbour encourages us.
"We have a lot of young people here that can do craft and wood carving but there is not enough room on Coco Cay and Sturrup Cay for them, and so they are bringing the tourists to us. We are looking forward to it."
Added Mr Ramsey: "We will do our best to prepare our students to take full advantage of the opportunities to contribute to our number one industry.
"A lot of the children are already working with their parent on weekends so they are learning the trade."
Mr Peet said he had been working "very closely with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line to find a way to have them make more of a meaningful contribution to the mainland of the Berry Islands.
"I commend them for the tremendous investment they have at Coco Cay; I commend them for the Bahamians they employ; and I commend them for the five ships they bring each week.
"And I am told, starting in a couple weeks, they will be bringing six ships per week. One of their largest ships was down last week. They had a very wonderful experience at Coco Cay and they are coming back. That will translate into between 10,000 and 15,000 tourists per week at Coco Cay."
Royal Caribbean is responsible for bringing more than 500,000 visitors to the Bahamas annually through Coco Cay, he said.
"With that type of impact on the national economy," said Mr Peet, "I thought the time had come for there to be more translation— the joy needs to be spread a bit for the mainland (Great Harbour Cay)."
Royal Caribbean officials, said Mr Peet, "have agreed in principal that the time has now come for tourists who come to Coco Cay be given the real Bahamian experience by having them come over here and be involved in tours, sharing Bahamian cuisine, and arts and crafts that you have right here in Great Harbour Cay starting in a matter of months."
He called on the local government team to "help lead the way in putting on seminars to prepare our people for the influx of tourists who are coming to have a positive experience about what happens in the Bahamas."
The Ministry of Tourism will be shortly starting training seminars for tour and fishing guides
"We need to have sufficient tour guides who can take tourists, when they come here, throughout the islands through the cays, through the hills, through the caves and show off all the historic artifacts and historic sites of the Berry Islands," said Mr Peet.
Ferry boat service by local operators will be needed to transport tourists from Coco Cay to Great Harbour Cay.
"My job is to spread the wealth around," he said, "to empower as many people as possible who want to work."
Another "very powerful" tourist attraction, said Mr Peet, is the variety of Bahamian cuisine offered.
"Some of the best cooks in the Bahamas are right here in Great Harbour Cay," he said, "and when the tourists come in we want to make sure that they taste the local cuisine, and there are several options.
"We expect to see some more indigenous restaurants popping up after maybe a year of this experience when the numbers can justify it and people can see they can make a good income from doing this."
He encouraged increased production in handicraft, straw work and other souvenirs to be sold here.
And he urged vendors on Coco Cay who are "earning a comfortable living" to learn how to manage their money.
Possible Coco Cay expansion to Great Harbor Cay ?
in Royal Caribbean International
Posted
Entire article is below...one interesting part of the article mentions, " Royal Caribbean officials, said Mr Peet, "have agreed in principal that the time has now come for tourists who come to Coco Cay be given the real Bahamian experience by having them come over here and be involved in tours, sharing Bahamian cuisine, and arts and crafts that you have right here in Great Harbour Cay starting in a matter of months."
Great Harbour Cay, the Berry Islands — Another Royal Caribbean cruise liner is to stop at Coco Cay boosting visitor arrival to this vacation destination to nearly 15,000 passengers per week, Labour and Immigration Minister Vincent Peet said.
And, tourists are being encouraged to visit the other islands that comprise the Berries, particularly the main island, Great Harbour Cay, the capital of which is Bullocks Harbour, he told residents here on Friday.
Mr Peet, the Member of Parliament for North Andros and the Berry Islands, urged residents to prepare themselves "for the influx of tourists" by enrolling in courses offered by the Ministry of Tourism.
"The Royal Caribbean people have no intention of going anywhere soon," he said. "They want to expand their investment here. They have full confidence in the people and government of The Bahamas.
"They are more excited now than they ever were. They know this is their best destination. And because they want to put more emphasis here, the time is right for Berry Islanders to be able to share in this expanded opportunity to empower yourselves economically and learn to work together as a team."
Already five Royal Caribbean liners stop at Coco Cay each week.
During ceremonies celebrating the 26th anniversary of the R N Gomez All-Age School, Vernita Rolle, the lunch lady, was honoured for her "unselfish contribution" to the school and students.
The news of increased tourist arrival was welcomed by chief councilor Mrs Christine Saunders and R N Gomez's principal Cleveland Ramsey.
"It is exciting to have these ships coming and bring all these tourists here," said Mrs Saunders. "The spillover coming into Bullocks Harbour encourages us.
"We have a lot of young people here that can do craft and wood carving but there is not enough room on Coco Cay and Sturrup Cay for them, and so they are bringing the tourists to us. We are looking forward to it."
Added Mr Ramsey: "We will do our best to prepare our students to take full advantage of the opportunities to contribute to our number one industry.
"A lot of the children are already working with their parent on weekends so they are learning the trade."
Mr Peet said he had been working "very closely with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line to find a way to have them make more of a meaningful contribution to the mainland of the Berry Islands.
"I commend them for the tremendous investment they have at Coco Cay; I commend them for the Bahamians they employ; and I commend them for the five ships they bring each week.
"And I am told, starting in a couple weeks, they will be bringing six ships per week. One of their largest ships was down last week. They had a very wonderful experience at Coco Cay and they are coming back. That will translate into between 10,000 and 15,000 tourists per week at Coco Cay."
Royal Caribbean is responsible for bringing more than 500,000 visitors to the Bahamas annually through Coco Cay, he said.
"With that type of impact on the national economy," said Mr Peet, "I thought the time had come for there to be more translation— the joy needs to be spread a bit for the mainland (Great Harbour Cay)."
Royal Caribbean officials, said Mr Peet, "have agreed in principal that the time has now come for tourists who come to Coco Cay be given the real Bahamian experience by having them come over here and be involved in tours, sharing Bahamian cuisine, and arts and crafts that you have right here in Great Harbour Cay starting in a matter of months."
He called on the local government team to "help lead the way in putting on seminars to prepare our people for the influx of tourists who are coming to have a positive experience about what happens in the Bahamas."
The Ministry of Tourism will be shortly starting training seminars for tour and fishing guides
"We need to have sufficient tour guides who can take tourists, when they come here, throughout the islands through the cays, through the hills, through the caves and show off all the historic artifacts and historic sites of the Berry Islands," said Mr Peet.
Ferry boat service by local operators will be needed to transport tourists from Coco Cay to Great Harbour Cay.
"My job is to spread the wealth around," he said, "to empower as many people as possible who want to work."
Another "very powerful" tourist attraction, said Mr Peet, is the variety of Bahamian cuisine offered.
"Some of the best cooks in the Bahamas are right here in Great Harbour Cay," he said, "and when the tourists come in we want to make sure that they taste the local cuisine, and there are several options.
"We expect to see some more indigenous restaurants popping up after maybe a year of this experience when the numbers can justify it and people can see they can make a good income from doing this."
He encouraged increased production in handicraft, straw work and other souvenirs to be sold here.
And he urged vendors on Coco Cay who are "earning a comfortable living" to learn how to manage their money.
Countdown to the Voyager out of NYC