Minister of Tourism Richard Sealy at the Foster & Ince booth, in discussion with Matt Grimes of Fred Olsen Cruises and Martin Ince (right), CEO of Foster & Ince.

by Bernard Babb

Several Barbadian companies and agencies connected to the cruise-tourism sector were well represented at the 2008 SeaTrade Convention which concluded last Friday in Miami, Florida.

Local players in the cruise industry attended conference sesssions where they were updated on the latest trends in the industry, as well as held important business meetings with cruise lines and other partners.

Industry experts project that a record 12.8 million passengers will take cruises in 2008, with more than ten million coming from the United States market alone.

Barbados was also highly visible at a massive trade show and exposition which formed part of the 24th annual conference at the Miami Convention Centre.

A dozen other Caribbean destinations were also represented as part of the Caribbean Village, along with all other major global competitors such as Mexico, several American cities, Dubai, European destinations, Australia, China and others.

The SeaTrade Convention is regarded as the biggest business forum on the cruise industry and Barbadian representatives included Minister of Tourism Richard Sealy and others from the Barbados Tourism Authority, the Barbados Port Inc., the Ministry of Tourism, the Bridgetown Cruise Terminal, the Malibu Visitor Centre, Tall Ships, Foster & Ince Cruise Services, Goddards Shipping & Tours, Chickmont Foods, Banks Breweries and Jays Enterprises.

Organisers said about 10 000 delegates were registered for the conference which is a meeting point for the leading players in the global cruise business and brings together cruiseline executives, destination marketers, suppliers, government officials, leading ship construction companies, port executives, global insurance companies, telecommunications companies, and others.