Where is Guadeloupe in terms of tourist numbers? Is traveling to and from the archipelago easy, or even affordable? These are questions that we asked Patrick Vial-Collet, the president of the CCI IG. On the set of the Guadeloupe la 1ère television news, he returned to the cost of plane tickets and the local offer in terms of air desserts.
The health crisis is behind us. From now on, the world stage is getting back into place, on the tourist activity front. Destinations that were once shunned represent their place, among the areas to visit and with undeniable assets; this is particularly the case for Asia.
Guadeloupe, in comparison, is a “small market” here “holds up well”explains the president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Islands of Guadeloupe (CCI IG).
Guadeloupe has 800,000 tourists, that’s not nothing. Before Covid, we set out to attract more than a million tourists ; we had reached it elsewhere, since it was 800,000 tourists, plus 300,000 cruise passengers. We must persevere and we must give ourselves more resources to be more offensive, particularly in North America.
Patrick Vial-Collet, president of the CCI IG
Encouraging travelers to come and discover the Guadeloupe destination is a question of communication, of offering air desserts, but also of cost, particularly plane tickets.
According to the digital platform Orchestra, dedicated to the tourism sector, reservations via travel agencies fell by 37%, to the detriment of the destination Guadeloupe, in March 2024.
A figure that the Guadeloupe Islands Tourism Committee (CTIG) would like to put into perspective.
The monthly barometer produced for Echo Touristique therefore counts sales of “packaged” trips and sales of dry flights, carried out mainly by physical travel agencies, with a selection of partners (…). The French prepare and book their vacations mainly online (…). The reputation of the “Islands of Guadeloupe” destination among the general public remains strong on the French market.
CTIG press release – 04/12/2024.
The CTIG wants this to prove the 2.84% increase in traffic at the “Guadeloupe – Pôle Caraibes” airport from France.
Attendance at the airport platform is, for the first quarter of 2024, stable compared to last year but, certainly, still well below the results before the health crisis linked to Covid-19.
READ ALSO : Guadeloupe Pôle Caraibes Airport: stable passenger traffic compared to last year, in the 1st quarter of 2024 – 04/14/2024.
Patrick Vial-Collet, president of the CCI IG, shares the opinion of the CTIG, regarding the figures released by Orchestra.
We need to temper the numbers. initially, these are not the arrivals, because otherwise we would not have had approximately the same number of passengers. These are the order intake, that is to say that in March, on sale in travel agencies, there was less than 40%. They were largely offset by direct sales.
Patrick Vial-Collet, president of the CCI IG
It is especially the post-second quarter which is to be feared, according to the president of the CCI IG, following the end of the high tourist season. The activity of professionals in the sector will be slowed down, in particular because of the increase in plane ticket prices and strong competition from Asia.
A problem comes up repeatedly: the prices of plane tickets. They are considered exorbitant by travelers, departing from and going to Guadeloupe, an island territory far from mainland France, which should have benefited from favorable measures, in the name of territorial continuity.
Regional flights are also impacted by inflation. How can we explain, for example, that a Pointe-Ă -Pitre/Santo Domingo ticket costs more than a Paris/Santo Domingo ticket?
At the risk of surprising you, I am going to take up the General Directorate of Civil Aviation, which said that tickets to the Antilles are, in terms of the kilometer transported, among the cheapest. North America is around 7 cts/km, we are at 5 cts/km, Africa is 9 cts/km. Simply, what happened? The kerosene exploded: more than double. The airlines do not have incredible results and the price increase has not made it possible to reap super profits. No not at all. An airline, if it makes 4 to 5% profit, that’s good. Understand me: for a plane ticket sold for €500, there is a profit of €20.
Patrick Vial-Collet, president of the CCI IG
Other”scoop” from the president of the CCI IG, which impacts travelers in the archipelago: kerosene costs 25% more in Guadeloupe, compared to the price in France.
For a very simple reason: we imposed a surcharge on kerosene here, to limit the increase in the price of vehicle fuel and we transferred to the airlines the additional cost and the increase in prices which should have been on the ‘car.
Patrick Vial-Collet, president of the CCI IG
Patrick Vial-Collet is also delighted with the expansion of St. Barth Executive’s activities. The airline based at RĂ©my de Haenen airport, in Saint BarthĂ©lĂ©my, will offer regular connections between the northern community and Pointe-Ă -Pitre from tomorrow (Monday April 15, 2024), then to San Juan (Puerto Rico) starting May 16. Other rotations between the islands of the Lesser Antilles will subsequently be added to this operator’s flight plan.
This is a good thing. First of all, nature abhors a vacuum and it is true that the disappearance of Air Antilles left a big void and there was a cruel lack of aerial desserts. So, I can only welcome this arrival and the fact that there will be progressive reinforcements of air services to San Juan, to Saint-Barth… Guadeloupeans will be able to benefit from it.
Patrick Vial-Collet, president of the CCI IG
READ ALSO : AIR. St. Bart Executive opens regular lines depending from Saint-BarthĂ©lemy to Pointe-Ă -Pitre and San Juan – 04/13/2024.
It turns out that at present there is little provision in terms of air traffic between the islands of Guadeloupe and the rest of the Caribbean. You often have to make stopovers in San Juan, or even in Santo Domingo to reach certain destinations; frequent travel in these circumstances.
The company Air Antilles, subject to a sale of activity since September 2023, was trying to meet this challenge of connecting the territories of the area. But the buyer, the new company Air Antilles, is slow to take off.
When the time comes, when the offer is put in place, we will still have to encourage travelers to turn to Caribbean destinations. The challenge will then lie in the sustainability of their attendance.
Naturally, there is no traffic that is established. We must strengthen communication, to encourage exchanges of people, goods (that is to say economic), tourism, so that the Caribbean is better served. We suffer from it and we start a bit from scratch, unfortunately. The disappearance of Air Antilles means that it is a big step backwards.
Patrick Vial-Collet, president of the CCI IG
READ ALSO : The resumption of Air Antilles flights once again postponed – 03/01/2024.
INTERVIEW TO REVIEW/
The president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Islands of Guadeloupe (CCI IG), Patrick Vial-Collet, was the guest of Yasmina Yacou, in the television news “Guadeloupe Soir” on Saturday April 13, 2024. A complete interview which we invite you to (re)see below:
Patrick Vial-Collet, president of the CCI IG, guest of the JT of 04/13/2024.
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