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Video transcript

Jess: Do The Bahamas have any news or tourism developments to share with travel agents? 

Latia: Thank you so much for the opportunity. So as a destination, we've certainly attracted more than 10 billion of investments over the last few years. Some are in Nassau Paradise Island, others are throughout the destination. There's Montage Cay coming up in Abaco. There's Six Senses in Grand Bahama. There's Four Seasons in Exuma. Throughout the entire destination, we do have new projects that are coming on stream. A variety of options certainly for our visitors to enjoy. 

Jess: And what type of clients should travel agents be in marketing The Bahamas to?

Latia: So The Bahamas offers a diverse experience, whether you want the cosmopolitan flair, there's Nassau and Paradise Island that gives you the busy nightlife and also the casinos. And then there's Freeport, Grand Bahama. More of an outdoor type of experience, sustainability, ecotourism. And then there are 14 other islands that we refer to as the Out Islands, boating, fishing, diving, more outdoor activities, water-based activities, whether you can do an array of options and activities or nothing at all. So for us, when we look at the type of clients, we have a menu of options that cater to all travellers. So there are no restrictions. And we certainly invite our travel agents and our travel advisors to share and to showcase everything that The Bahamas has to offer. 

Jess: And in terms of getting to The Bahamas, what are the best routes from the UK?

Latia: So connectivity is truly amazing. There are daily flights on British Airways, and we've also seen some of our travellers have opted to come through Canada. We have 45 weekly flights into Nassau starting in the winter. So we've seen them use Canada as a route to get to The Bahamas as well. But certainly connectivity. There's excellent connectivity. From Heathrow to Nassau and under, under nine hours. 

Jess: So what is it that makes The Bahamas such a sought-after destination in the Caribbean, and so attractive? 

Latia: The islands are The Bahamas. So we are a country of 700 islands. More than 2,000 cays stretched across 100,000 miles of crystal blue water. Thirty of our islands are inhabited and 16 of them we actively promote in the tourism space. What we've done at the Ministry of Tourism – our website, bahamas.com translated into five different languages. We have content stories we go through and we show you the experiences on every single island. And we also have a very active chat bot – you can reach me on the chat bot as well. We also curate itineraries, curate experiences for our visitors to enjoy. We have an amazing People-to-People programme, and this year we're celebrating 50 years where we pair a visitor with the same profile of a local, and you have a day in the life of a Bahamian. You can dine with us, cook with us, go to church with us, party with us, farm-to-table, fish-to-grill. Whatever we do as a local is what our visitors would enjoy. So it's truly an authentic experience. One of the things we also focus on in the destination is immersion. And so for us, we want to curate the itineraries based on experiences that you want to enjoy. This year we've launched our lifetime campaign with Lenny Kravitz, who is a Bahamian, and when he's not on tour, he's in his home in Eleuthra and we've launched a campaign because we always say it's not just one island, it's a lifetime of them, a lifetime of experiences, and it will truly take you a lifetime to enjoy all of what we have to offer.

Jess: Finally, can you tell me what support The Bahamas offer travel agents? 

Latia: So I will tell you, we value travel agents. We are so grateful that they partner with us, and the visitors that we enjoy in the destination are largely due to these partnerships. We have a Bahamas specialist programme that's translated into five different languages where we train our advisors on all things related to the destination, and they too become specialists in those areas. We incentivise them as well. We have a number of programmes that would encourage them to book to come to the destination or to refer the destination. And then we also offer FAM trips so that you can have a real life experience of what it is to be in the destination. 

Jess: Amazing. Thank you so much for your time today.

Latia: Thank you. And next up, I'm going to see you in the islands of The Bahamas. Thank you so much.