Business
New Tourism Directions For French Polynesia
Year round promotions planned for 2003
Dany Panero, the new general manager of Tahiti Tourisme, the government’s tourism promotion office, has set five new directions for the industry in the new year.
One of the new directions involves year-round promotion of French Polynesia and her islands without specifying a dry or wet season.
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As part of this campaign, Tahiti Tourisme has tasked its overseas representatives to focus on a period from November to March—a generally slow one in the French territory.
The other new directions are:
- Putting an accent on the island of Tahiti and all of its natural and cultural assets.
- Developing the Leeward Islands of Huahine and Taha’a, the Tuamotu atolls of Tikehau, Manihi and Fakarava and the Marquesas Islands by promoting them as “Hidden Paradises”.
- Trying to standardise the different “seasons” and tariff policies among local tourist industry professionals to favour the marketing of the industry’s products.
- Rationalising relations with the media in French Polynesia’s various tourist markets.
Looking ahead to 2004, the tourism minister Brigitte Vanizette said French Polynesia should be able to offer 4450 hotel rooms and more than 1700 family-style rooms.
With more planned hotel rooms, family pensions and cruise ships, French Polynesia should reach its objective of offering 6000 rooms and welcoming 350,000 tourists in 2005, Vanizette said.
Meanwhile, the capacity of cruise ships based in French Polynesia permanently or temporarily may reach 2390 passengers by late 2003 for eight vessels, six of which are new or are replacing smaller ships already in the French territory.
An unexpected early arrival will be the 148-passenger Wind Star, which is due in French Polynesia around January 24 to replace the Wind Song, which was heavily damaged by an engine room fire in December during a regular weekly cruise.
But by mid-December there had been no official announcement from Windstar Cruises whether the Wind Star will be a temporary or permanent replacement of the 148-passenger Wind Song. Windstar Cruises, part of Holland America, which is owned by Carnival Cruises, had previously announced that the 308-passenger Wind Surf was due to replace the Wind Song, probably around November 2003.
A possible capacity of 2390 cruise ship passengers by late 2003 is based on the Wind Surf replacing the Wind Star.
With four cruise ships based in French Polynesia during 2001, the territory had a capacity of 1874 passengers and handled 50,000 passengers that year, the government has reported.
P&O Princess Cruises’ 684-passenger Tahitian Princess, former Renaissance Cruises’ R-4, was due to arrive just before Christmas for cruises from French Polynesia to the Cook Islands, American Samoa, Samoa and the Marquesas Islands.
P&O’s 684-passenger Pacific Princess, the former Renaissance Cruises’ R-3, will operate cruises within French Polynesia two months out of the year, spending the rest of the time cruising from Sydney to New Caledonia via Vanuatu. The Pacific Princess will be the only one of the eight vessels not permanently based in French Polynesia year-round.
A bigger Aranui (208 vs. 104 passengers) is due in February for voyages to the Marquesas Islands. Bora Bora Cruises’ new twin 74-passenger ships (Tu Moana and Tia Moana) are due to start cruising the Leeward Islands in April, joining the 38-passenger Haumana.
The Haumana will stay in the Leeward Islands until the end of 2003 and then move to a new base in the Tuamotu Archipelago in January 2004.
That leaves Radisson Seven Seas Cruises’ 320-passenger M/S Paul Gauguin which returned to French Polynesia on December 14 after a routine dock check to resume weekly cruises to the Leeward Islands. However, the Paul Gauguin also makes special trips to the Marquesas Islands. French Polynesian government reported that during 2001 the two Renaissance Cruises’ ships, the Wind Song and the Paul Gauguin handled 50,000 passengers who spent some five billion French Pacific francs (about US$43.5 million) in shopping, restaurant meals and excursions.
During 2002, the Wind Song reportedly had an average occupancy rate of 80%-90% for its weekly cruises to French Polynesia’s outer islands since returning in May.
