News

Nov 17, 2005

Tourism

It requires a special effort to write about the subject of tourism fairly. So many lovely places have been despoiled by hordes of rubber-necked visitors that it's easy to see tourism as a modern plague. The problem was aptly described a few years ago by the Director of the National Park Service in the United States: "We're hired to preserve the natural beauty of the Parks for the enjoyment of future generations. So many members of THIS generation are enjoying them NOW , that the Parks are being destroyed." a similar sentiment reverberates throughout many of the world's loveliest places.
space

More than two hundred thousand visitors came to St. Barths last year, and although a substantial percentage were day-tripping cruise ship passengers, this remains an impressive number for a community of less than ten thousand inhabitants. Moreover, most of these people arrive between Christmas and Easter, a period locally referred to as "The Season". The phrase is used elsewhere to describe periods of legal hunting and fishing. Its use here, for the busiest time of the year, is not entirely coincidental. It would not be a great surprise to see a boutique owner on her way home with a plump tourist lashed across the front fender of her car.
space

Tourism is a leading moneymaker in all of those parts of the world not afflicted with civil strife or burdened with awful weather. It is a vital monetary force in all of the West Indies, and it is virtually the only viable livelihood available to St. Barths' residents.
space

Local folk realize this, and most are willing to put up with a certain degree of unpleasantness to accommodate those things that will attract and amuse tourists. There is, of course, a limit, and just where the line is to be drawn is one of the island community's ongoing preoccupations.
space

Any private dinner party echoes the same litany of complaints: too much building, too many cars, a lowering class of tourists, too many carpetbaggers, the degradation of the environment, etc..
space

It has become a specialized form of local wit to find a new, erudite complaint about imminent change: the suggestion that someone may inaugurate a car ferry from St. Maarten will immediately raise both eyebrows and heart rates.
space

There is a good deal of truth contained in all this belly-aching, but the fact remains that the development of St. Barths has been handled pretty well.
space

Vacationers go where they please, day and night, without any anxiety about their safety, and without a sympathetic concern for the sad poverty of the inhabitants. When visitors meet someone who lives here - a more likely prospect than in many tourist destinations - they often reveal a trace of envy.
space

The first tourist supplied welcome money for a new straw hat and a new package of fish hooks. Today the flood of visitors finances children's higher education, a comfortable house to live in, a decent car or two, telephones, satellite TV, broadband internet connections, and round-trip tickets to Gay Paree.
space

Not too bad.
space

Not too bad at all.

Peter O'Keefe

Print

<<<

[Apr 10, 2012] Beyonce and Jay-Z spend Easter in St. Barts

Beyonce and Jay-Z have taken their daughter on her first vacation. The couple, who celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary last week, have been enjoying the sunshine on the Caribbean island of St. Barts with three-month-old Blue Ivy over the weekend, and took the tot for a day trip on a yacht. ...

News

Tourism

[Apr 10, 2012] Beyonce and Jay-Z spend Easter in St. Barts

[Apr 2, 2012] Les voiles de Saint-Barth 2012

[Mar 31, 2012] The Ambiance of St Barths Bucket 2012

[Mar 27, 2012] Bucket Regatta 2012: SY Rebecca

[Mar 14, 2012] Sir Paul McCartney and Nancy Shevell in holidays

[Jan 19, 2012] Chris Hemsworth - Elsa Pataky - Matt Damon

[Jan 3, 2012] Tamara Mellon on the beach

[Jan 2, 2012] Gary Lineker and his wife

[Oct 12, 2011] Best Beaches in St Barts

[Oct 8, 2011] Is St. Barts Your Next Holiday Destination?

[Sep 9, 2011] Vacation With the Rich and Famous at St. Barts

[Aug 27, 2011] Daytripping in the Caribbean

[Aug 20, 2011] For $43 Million, You Can Be Roman Abramovich's Neighbor In St. Barths

[Aug 13, 2011] Brooke Burke & David Charvet Tie the Knot in St Barts

[Jun 20, 2011] St. Barth Summer Sessions Aug 5-15, 2011

[May 18, 2011] Eclipse - Maga Yacht of Roman Abramovich - The Biggest Superyacht in the world

[May 5, 2011] Ashley Rodriguez Trio in St Barts from May 5th to May 15th 2011

[Aug 30, 2010] Earl Hurricane - St Barts - 30 August 2010

[Aug 10, 2010] Saint Barth Summer Sessions

[Jun 7, 2010] The Great Fish Debate