Route development exercise aiming to enhance Caribbean airline travel regime

With the Caribbean continuing to attract increasing global attention as much for its reputation as a favoured tourism destination as for its more recent growing profile as a continually emerging investment haven, the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) is moving to help make the region more accessible to visitors by upgrading its airline route development regime.

A Wednesday February 14 Jamaica Gleaner report says that the Barbados-based CTO will shortly be staging a “landmark two-day training event focused on airline route development for regional tourism leaders.” The training exercise, the CTO says, will be conducted on February 20th and 21st at its headquarters in partnership with another regional agency, Airport Strategy & Marketing (ASM) which provides instructional courses in the use of modern marketing techniques to increase airports’ revenue.

“By collaborating with ASM… a major international authority in global route development, we are bringing together the best in the field to provide an unparalleled learning experience for our tourism leaders,” CTO Secretary-General Dona Regis-Prosper is quoted as saying about the new development. The initiative, she says, adds “a significant milestone to the inter-governmental organization’s efforts to strengthen aerial highways to and from the region.”

The CTO disclosure says that the initiative is geared towards high-level tourism professionals including

Tourism Ministers, Directors of Tourism, Chief Executive Officers and other senior officials given that it seeks to provide in-depth knowledge and practical skills in key areas such as effective aviation marketing plans, successful incentive strategies, negotiation techniques for new airline routes, and the fundamentals of route development.

The training is expected to draw significant attention from industry leaders looking to gain an edge in the world of aviation due to its “interactive approach; intimate, focused learning environment; and opportunity for networking and exchanging ideas,” the CTO head is reported as asserting, adding that what is regarded as a strategic move between itself and the ASM is designed to bolster the Caribbean’s position in the worldwide aviation market.

“As the Caribbean continues to evolve as a key player in the global tourism industry, training and networking events are crucial for staying ahead in an increasingly competitive field,” the CTO Secretary-General adds, even as she reportedly urged stakeholders to “seize this unique opportunity to elevate their expertise related to airline route development and reshape their aviation strategies”.

The managing director of Strategy and Consulting for Aviation Week Network, David Stroud, said airline negotiations and route support mechanisms have become an important part of air service development, and that the new initiative “will provide delegates with the understanding and the techniques required to come to new agreements with airlines that will help bolster the airlift of the Caribbean”. The training session precedes Routes Americas 2024, the leading air service development event in the Americas, scheduled to be held in Bogota, Colombia, from March 19-21.