Is The Caribbean Brand in Trouble?

There’s a lot of talk in tourism about the ‘Caribbean brand’ but what exactly is the region’s calling card? Opinions differ and, as the Caribbean moves on from its reliance on year-round sun to embrace on-trend niches, the Caribbean brand is getting harder to pin down. 

The brand may be more complicated in today’s tourism economy, but it’s also more vulnerable. The region’s reputation has taken a hit in recent years thanks to an array of factors both preventable and unavoidable such as hurricanes, shark attacks, escalating crime, poor infrastructure and international scandals.

Niche marketing

Early Caribbean tourism was built on three things: sun, sand, and sea. While this three-pronged formula seems tired, overdone and uncompetitive in the modern era, when tropical climates are now easily accessible to all kinds of travellers regardless of income or origin, it was once the bedrock of the regional industry.

But the brand is no longer reliant on the weather. It has broken out of the box to encompass many aspects of today’s changing tourism market. From wellness to eco-tourism, savvy stakeholders are learning how to use the region’s natural attributes to target on-trend sub-sectors.

In one sense, Caribbean tourism has come full circle. As the health and wellness sector enjoys renewed attention, Caribbean islands once again find themselves the destination for visitors looking to relax, detox and heal. Except that today’s visitors are no longer content to just soak up the sun to cure their ailments. Health and wellness consumers want a fully-immersive experience, heading to spas that use natural, local ingredients in their products, staying at environmentally-ethical resorts that eschew chemicals and seeking out meditative spaces where they can disconnect.

Visitors looking for wellness are also likely to favour ‘green’ getaways where they can enjoy the destination’s unique flora and fauna, whether through diving trips, bird-watching excursions or kayaking tours. This growing interest in nature vacations, combined with the region’s unique biodiversity, has made eco-tourism an important part of today’s
Caribbean branding.

Reputational risk

The brand may be broadening its base, but it’s also at risk. The Caribbean has been making the headlines for all the wrong reasons lately. First came the spate of alleged poisonings in the Dominican Republic. According to the US State Department, three Americans died of respiratory failure while staying at the exclusive Bahia Principe hotel, while several others complained of being poisoned by drinks. The international press had a field day and speculation ranged from tampered alcohol to heavy pesticide use. The island’s Tourism Minister pushed back, claiming that the number of deaths was “statistically normal” and pointing out that autopsies showed the victims died of natural causes. Investigations continue but the story, which spread fast and wide over social media, had already done its damage, with the American Society of Travel Advisors telling Forbes that 60 per cent of its members had cancelled trips to the DR.

In June, the media were again in a frenzy, this time over a horrific shark attack in the Bahamas. College student Jordan Lindsey was ripped apart by three sharks during a snorkelling trip and died at a Nassau hospital. The family of the 21-year-old claimed the tour operators had no basic medical equipment and were slow to respond in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy. Shark attacks are rare and sometimes unavoidable, but the incident raised questions about the training and oversight of tour providers.

From one kind of predator to another. As the FBI continues to investigate sex trafficking claims against the now deceased billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, law enforcement has zeroed in on the financier’s private island . . . in the Caribbean. Already tarnished by its image as a tax haven for the world’s wealthiest, the Caribbean now appears to provide shelter for those who want to commit heinous crimes in the safe isolation of their tropical hideaways.

However, following the adage that all press is good press, ‘paedophile island’, as the outcrop in the US Virgin Islands is now known, has attracted a macabre type of tourism. Boat charter companies in nearby St Thomas have noticed an uptick in bookings from people wanting to cruise around the island and get a glimpse of the property at the centre of so many disturbing allegations.

Protecting the brand

Despite these various controversies, there’s no doubt that Caribbean tourism is on the upswing. Just under 30 million tourists poured into the islands last year, according to the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO), and the Caribbean took a 2.1 per cent share of the global tourism market.

Tourism as an industry has always been known for its resilience and flexibility. The beauty of a brand is that it can change over time in response to demand. As new niches come to the fore — cannabis tourism, medical tourism, experiential tourism — the Caribbean can carve out a place in these new sectors; provided it avoids more negative press.

While there are some hits to the brand that Caribbean tourism leaders simply cannot prevent (devastation wreaked by hurricanes, outbreaks of tropical diseases such as Dengue Fever, tourist accidents), there are many more that they can.

The Caribbean is well-known as a high crime area and the deaths in the DR, along with claims of tourist assaults, only add to its dangerous reputation. Saint Lucia has also had its fair share of lurid headlines, with the high-profile murders of British citizens Robert Hathaway and Roger Pratt. In 2014 the island was named one of the Top 10 Most Dangerous Cruise Destinations in the World by Cruise Law News. 

The high crime has led the US to issue yearly crime warnings, covering almost the entire region. While Saint Lucia has avoided inclusion on the latest list, other destinations haven’t been so lucky. The State Department urges tourists travelling to the Bahamas, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic and Trinidad and Tobago to “exercise increased caution”.

Addressing crime, modernising infrastructure, tightening oversight of tourism operators and having effective disaster preparedness and response strategies in place — these are all steps that destinations can take to not only increase their own share of the market, but also present a united front when building a regional brand. The CTO slogan ‘One Caribbean’ isn’t just a marketing gimmick, it’s a reminder that a blight on one destination affects all islands.