Tourist Cruise Ships and the Trade in Services: Recent Trends in Countries of the Caribbean Basin

This issue of the Bulletin reviews the main trends of trade in goods and services for the countries of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) in 2004. The strong recovery of trade in goods and the robust expansion of trade in services are highlighted, emphasizing the increase in services as a proportion of total exports for the smaller Caribbean economies, which may even exceed 80%.A detailed analysis of the performance of the tourism component, especially travel, showed that in 2004 there was a boom in cruise ship arrivals, a situation which poses a real challenge for some islands in terms of ensuring a permanent flow of tourists and making use of the main comparative advantages -sun, sea and beaches- and possible linkages with the rest of the economy such as the hotel industry, restaurants, business and entertainment centres, guided excursions, transport, yachting, and others. In some islands, the ratio of cruise passengers to inhabitants is particularly high, and can reach a significant factor of about 11 tourists for every inhabitant in the Bahamas, 8 in Aruba, 7 in Antigua and Barbuda and 5 in Dominica, and around 4 for a sample of eleven countries.One of the main challenges for a number of Caribbean islands is how to capitalize on such linkages by developing sustainable tourism that minimizes the possible adverse impacts on the environment and the everyday life of the citizens.

Maritime transport liberalization and the challenges to further its implementation in Chile

Includes bibliography

Port state control in the Caribbean

This edition of the FAL Bulletin describes and analyses the control of ships at ports - the so-called "Port State Control" - in the Caribbean. It is based on a text supplied by Mr. Curtis A. Roach, Regional Maritime Safety Advisor, CARICOM.

The tourist cruise industry and its impact on South America

The global tourist cruise industry has been experiencing sustained growth for quite some time; the industry's future prospects are promising, due to good profitability and a reduction in costs achieved thanks to use of ever larger ships, which are making this new form of tourism accessible to more and more people.South American destinations have been visited by a wide range of cruise operators, reflecting the expansion of this industry worldwide; it is necessary that players in the industry take advantage of this opportunity to provide services that employ substantial numbers of people and develop port facilities in order to meet the requirements of ships and tourists alike, thereby heading off competition from other routes.

Tourist cruises in South America: new opportunities and challenges

More free time and disposable income not only in developed but also in emerging countries have generated a demand that shipping lines have capitalized on by offering ocean cruise services to an exponentially growing segment of the tourist industry. With the search for alternative destinations for ocean cruises, in recent years the Southern Cone countries of Latin America have been playing host to an encouraging number of passenger ships during the summer November-March season, suggesting that this sub-region could become a permanent feature of the circuit of international ocean cruises. To convert this into a reality, however, will require investment in port facilities and passenger terminals, thus presenting an opportunity for private participation in providing and running these facilities.