February saw a celebration of colour, and an increase of 29% year over year in UK arrivals across the tri-island state of Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique as the Spice Isle celebrated 50 years of independence. This follows an increase of 8% in January 2024. This is in no small part due to the strategic initiatives and collaborative efforts with travel agents, operators and airlines by the Grenada Tourism Authority in the UK market.
Most recently, Petra Roach, Chief Executive Officer of the Grenada Tourism Authority, alongside Emil Edwards, UK Sales Manager and UK Trade Representatives Black Diamond attended the prestigious Unite Caribbean event on the 11th of March 2024 as part of a UK outreach sales mission. The team participated in 25 high-impact meetings with key UK tour operators, providing them with comprehensive insights and resources essential for effectively promoting and selling Grenada as a premier travel destination.
“These collaborative efforts between the GTA and our valued UK tour operators are with the express intention of increasing Grenada’s presence in the UK market. That they have manifested in the growth in UK tourism arrivals to Grenada, shows that this strategic investment has worked.” stated Petra Roach, Chief Executive Officer of the Grenada Tourism Authority. “The British market has a high return visitation, the longest length of stay and one of the highest visitor spends. So we have prioritized it as one of our pillars of growth for 2024.”
Also in attendance were representatives from Spice Island Beach Resort, Calabash Hotel, Silver Sands and Silver Sands -The Beach House, Coyaba, True Blue Bay, Mount Cinnamon and St. James Travel and Tours.
Adele Garbutt, Owner & Director at Calabash, said, “We continue to see business at Calabash thrive, with bookings pacing 43% ahead of this time last year, and a 35% increase in revenue for Q1 2024. We’re looking forward to another very successful year as UK travelers become increasingly aware of all that Grenada has to offer, from the uncrowded white sandy beaches and lush rainforests to the rich culture and laid-back atmosphere.”
Reports from tour operators indicate strong growth for Grenada in 2024, with bookings for the first two months already surpassing last year’s figures in the first quarter alone. The highly anticipated Six Senses is already generating bookings before its opening in April 2024.
Industry leaders and UK-based tour operators shared extremely positive feedback on the state of business to the tri-island state:
Brydie Peacock, Marketing Manager of Caribtours, remarked, “Grenada is doing really well at the moment! The majority of the Caribbean is down, with the only two islands that are up currently are Barbados and Grenada.”
Emma Fruer, Destination Executive – Caribbean at BA Holidays, shared, “January sales to Grenada experienced a substantial double-digit increase in 2024 year-on-year.”
Melissa Scarlet, Senior Product Executive – Caribbean at Kuoni, hailed Grenada as a “shining star.”
Harriet Hudders, Partnerships Manager at GoldMedal, said, “Grenada is currently the best-performing island with the highest growth within our top 10 performing destinations.”
Virgin Atlantic and British Airways have also both reported a strong first quarter for Grenada, with Virgin Atlantic revealing that bookings are a nearly twofold increase in arrivals to Grenada from the UK compared to figures from the corresponding period in 2023.
