Government to pursue more high-end tourism

The government is to make a conscious effort to attract more high-end tourism
developments to Antigua and Barbuda, as these tend to be more profitable
establishments that can pay higher salaries to their employees.
The policy, though not new, was announced by Prime Minister Gaston Browne
while providing an update on developments related to the recent purchase of the
lands at Half Moon Bay.
PM Browne said the purchase of the property has been completed by a group out
of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and they intend to develop a high-end luxury
brand property that will include rooms, as well as villas, based on the Jumby Bay
model.
“They are now putting together all their preliminary drawings and I believe that in
a matter of a few months, they will brief us on precisely the amount of money they
intend to invest. We expect it to be probably about two to three million dollars
(US). The Half Moon Bay is a 100-acre property, so we expect them to be putting
down a very impressive resort with villas. Normally, these resorts come with high-
end villas as well. That is because the villas help to subsidize the revenue and add
to the profitability; it’s like the Jumby Bay model,” he declared.
PM Browne noted that it is the profitability of these high-end properties that make
them attractive to the government. “We don’t think that the low-end hotel product,
-though important by providing employment for thousands of people,- … we don’t
know that this product is as profitable as it ought to be, and we don’t think that the
type of remuneration that the staff get out of that product is sufficient for true
empowerment. So, we are going after the high-end resorts with premium salaries
so where you have someone making $2,000.00 at an all-inclusive, you can get
$3,000.00 at the high-end resort because the profitability is greater,” he added.