Florida Caribbean Cruise Assn. seeks dialogue with Belize

Today officials of the Florida Caribbean Cruise Association were in town for a series of meetings with local service providers, government, and the media. The organisation represents fourteen cruise lines that operate in the region in order to present a common front for dealing with various entities at ports of call. The F.C.C.A.’s President, Michele Paige, told an audience at the Princess Hotel that while Belize is growing rapidly as a cruise destination, it needs to take steps to improve visitor satisfaction, particularly in Belize City. She stressed that cruise spending varies widely between destinations, but that between passengers and crew each ship can bring in a quarter million U.S. dollars per day in revenue for Belizean vendors. Paige and colleagues from the various cruise lines will be exploring ways in which those local operators can increase their revenues while at the same time improving service. Happy passengers, she noted, spend more money.