St. Maarten a terrific
candidate for tapping faith tourism market
By Judy H. Fitzpatrick and Hazel Durand
The Daily Herald, St. Maarten
http://www.thedailyherald.com/news/daily/l010/faith010.html
May 28, 2008
PHILIPSBURG - St. Maarten may be only sixteen square miles, but its
varied facilities, natural Caribbean setting, strategic location and
cultural and religious diversity make it a prime candidate for faith
tourism, a multibillion-dollar industry beckoning to be exploited.
With the pressure to find new niche markets to keep tourists flowing to
the Caribbean region mounting under the weight of the spiralling fuel
and food prices globally, several local stakeholders and faith-based
organisations have expressed willingness to go after this fast-growing
market.
The International Conference on Religious Tourism tags the worldwide
faith tourism segment of the industry at US $18 billion, with religious
tourists from North America, where St. Maarten spends much of its
marketing dollars, accounting for $10 billion of that amount.
US-based publication The Christian Post has said that now more than ever
before, churches are beginning to recognise travel as ministry - an
opportunity to experience faith, fellowship and fun, while exploring the
world. World Religious Travel Association President Kevin J. Wright is
numbered amongst that enlightened group. He said the faith tourism
market provided a good opportunity for the Caribbean and the region
should position itself to tap it.
"Let the (faith communities) know that you exist and let the travel
industry know that you are open to faith tourism," Wright told
participants at the just-ended Caribbean Media Exchange on Sustainable
Tourism (CMEx) in Puerto Rico attended by close to 100 journalists,
editors and industry experts.
Wright, also Chairman of the World Religious Travel Expo, said the
faith-based market was no longer a seniors-only small-budget market of
people solely interested in pilgrimage. The "new era" in faith tourism,
he stressed, represents people of all ages who are looking for
multi-vacation experiences and quality products and services.
Willingness
Representatives of several faith-based organisations here believe that
St. Maarten is an ideal destination for attracting religious tourism and
are willing to do their part to promote it.
Some argue that while St. Maarten may not have religious shrines for
pilgrimages, with 104 different nationalities residing here, people from
just about every religion can be found in "The Friendly Island." At last
week's St. Maarten Community Service outreach programme, for example, it
was found that there are 83 Christian churches in St. Maarten.
Some also contend that the newly constructed St. Maarten Festival
Village, which can accommodate thousands of people, and which has
undergone a remarkable transformation and now features about 80 food
booths, a huge stage and improved washroom and other facilities, is a
good location for hosting large conventions.
The Festival Village, coupled with the growing number of hotel rooms and
St. Maarten's strategic geographic location and airlift ease, adds to
the island's allure to the religious travel market.
Many religious groups have already been engaged in activities that
attract faith-based travellers without even realising it. For example,
many people from neighbouring islands flew in to attend the crusade of
televangelist Benny Hinn when it was held here a few years ago.
Also, the just-ended second annual St. Maarten Believers Convention
attracted close to 1,500 people, about 10 per cent of whom flew in from
abroad, St. Maarten United Ministerial Foundation President Wycliffe
Smith estimates.
He said that although it hadn't been thought of when the event was
conceived, its potential to attract overseas-based religious persons was
in keeping with the organisers' goal of "growing" the event. He also
spoke of other Christian-organised events that had the potential to
attract people from abroad to worship and minister, and to enjoy what
the island has to offer.
The Hindu population here has also organised small spiritual camps and
other events from time to time, some of which attract overseas-based
Indians, explained Hindu spiritual leader Anita Advani who has resided
here for many years. One such camp, which featured Indian spiritual
leader J.P. Raswani as a guest speaker, attracted about 100 persons,
including some from abroad.
Advani said that although St. Maarten had lost out on the niche market
for Hindu weddings when the visa requirement for Indians was introduced
some time ago, faith tourism was another market that could be
capitalised on. St. Maarten, she noted, has "nice hotels" and a large
number of Indian restaurants that can appeal to Hindu and other
religious tourists.
Since its establishment, the local chapter of Buddhist compassion relief
organisation Tzu Chi Foundation has also organised events that attracted
large crowds. In 2005, for example, a group of Buddhists from the US
visited the island for fellowship purposes as well as to immerse
themselves in the island's culture and history.
The Foundation has long-term plans to organise conferences and camps
that can attract Buddhists from abroad, said President Sandra Cheung.
Bishop Sam of Thy Kingdom Come Ministries, like Cheung, said St. Maarten
had a golden opportunity to become a model for this type of tourism in
the region. Sam went a step further, saying faith tourism could help to
reignite the island's friendly nature and attract a more "holistic" set
of visitors to the island, something he said would be "wholesome" for
the destination.
Pastor Lewis Constant of Christ Triumph Church said the island should
"explore every avenue," including religious tourism, that could boost
its tourism industry.
"The strong faith of our people combined with natural beauty and the
many different nations represented here make St. Maarten a perfect place
to gather in small and large groups to celebrate one's faith, which is
what religious tourism is all about," Lewis explained. Despite the
slowdown of the US economy, the large number of Americans interested in
religious travel presents a tremendous opportunity for St. Maarten, he
said.
Sister Devki Ramsahai of the local chapter of the Brama Kumaris World
Spiritual University concurs: "Talking about God in the Caribbean is so
easy because nature has a soothing effect on people's minds. We have
warm, open and hospitable people and our culture and environment are
good to develop faith tourism."
Faith what?
But while some are willing to get on board the faith tourism bandwagon,
some have never heard of the concept and are unsure how they can
contribute. When approached for their views, Pastor Ludwig Hodge and
Iman Yakubu Mohammed said they were not familiar with the concept.
Mohammed said that although the 500- to 600-strong Muslim community here
had not organised any huge religious events that could attract overseas
religious travellers in recent history, many Muslims here were involved
in businesses that catered to the tourism industry. He said too that the
mosque in Cay Hill was open to the public and religious Muslim and other
travellers also could make use of this facility for prayers when here.
While he is unfamiliar with the concept, Hodge said, "All things are
possible once God is in it," and religious tourism would work if pursued
with faith.
Improvements
While all agree that St. Maarten can position itself as a faith-based
destination, Smith said that even with the refurbished Festival Village,
there was need for additional facilities to accommodate the sort of huge
crowds that large-scale faith conventions could attract.
He also underscored the need for infrastructural improvements and the
need for less expensive accommodation. He noted that there had been
occasions when religious travellers had had to stay in "makeshift
places" because of the high cost of accommodation here.
However, Tourism Commissioner Roy Marlin said the island's hotel
inventory included many small hotels that offered economical
accommodation to visitors on low budgets.
On the plus side, Smith said the Ministerial Foundation was willing to
work along with authorities to help promote the island as a faith-based
destination if a firm commitment was made to do so.
Marketing
Cognisant of the potential of this industry, local tourism officials are
willing to back it. Marlin, like Tourism Director Regina LaBega who
attended the CMEx exchange, contended that local faith-based groups were
already tapping this niche through conferences and other events that
attracted overseas visitors, many of whom also capitalised on the
opportunity to be immersed in the St. Marten hospitality, culture and
cuisine.
LaBega said though that more specific marketing strategies could and
would be used to promote St. Maarten as a faith-based tourism
destination, if the benefits were clearly established. She said all
hands would have to be on deck to guard against a repetition of a
previous experience that had resulted in the shelving of a proposal to
attract religious travellers after local religious groups had protested.
Marlin said several activities could be added to the island's calendar
of events to tap the market. This can be done in such a way that it
"fills in" for the low numbers recorded in the off season. "I think it's
something that can be pursued, but it will need proper planning and
possibly involve a team of persons in the ministry and tourism
officials," he said.
St. Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association (SHTA) President Emil Lee
said the idea of "developing faith tourism solely for the purpose of
tourism seems wrong." He believes that the best way to make St. Maarten
an attractive destination to visit is to make it a more attractive place
to live.
"We shouldn't modify our beliefs or culture just to attract more
visitors. As a matter of fact, more and more tourists are looking for an
authentic experience. If it turns out that there is a demand to visit
St. Maarten for reasons of faith, naturally, SHTA will assist in
whatever way possible to make visiting the island easy and enjoyable."
As the Island Territory ponders its faith tourism prospects,
preparations are in full swing for the first international travel
convention in faith tourism expo in Orlando, Florida, in
October-November. It will provide an opportunity for destinations like
St. Maarten to further explore their prospects in this alluring niche
market that beckons those of good faith.
Posted by kevinjwright at Thursday, May 29, 2008
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