Following a record-breaking year in stay-over arrivals to the destination and three consistent years of growth in cruise tourism, this country’s tourism officials are pushing for greater strategic partnerships as St. Vincent and the Grenadines positions itself as a globally competitive tourism destination.
Tourism Minister, Hon. Carlos James, this week, led a delegation of tourism officials to the United Kingdom, where they met with president of Carnival Cruise Lines UK and P&O Cruises, Paul Ludlow, and his team of cruise executives, including directors of shore and port operations, strategic planning, senior itinerary and destination planners, maritime and early careers managers.
Also joining the meeting was Carnival Corporations’ Senior Vice President, Government and Destination Affairs, Marie Mckie and Charlene Drakes, Manager Stakeholder Engagements – Caribbean Region.
The meeting was held on Tuesday at the Carnival Cruise Line UK Headquarters in Southampton, United Kingdom.
According to Minister James, Carnival Cruise Line and P&O Cruises combine, captures the largest market share by cruise operators out of the United Kingdom and creating opportunities for greater strategic partnerships will help the destination.
Noting that the UK market has been sluggish, generally across the board for most Caribbean islands, Minister James remains optimistic regarding the future market share for St. Vincent and the Grenadines as UK visitor arrivals to SVG surged by 26.7%, over its pre-pandemic numbers.
“We are seeing signs of recovery in the UK market and patterns of growth emerging, in time this will translate into greater consumer spend and we are positioning SVG as the must-visit destination among consumers,” Minister James said.
The Tourism Minister noted with the buildout of more hotels in St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the coming months and the planned expansion of the Kingstown Cruise Terminal, the destination is emerging as a strong globally competitive choice among consumers.
The visit to the Carnival Cruise Line UK Southampton Headquarters coincided with the launch of the destination’s ‘Discover More’ UK marketing campaign.
As part of the promotional campaign, 10 branded iconic London black cabs were unveiled featuring eye-catching Saint Vincent and the Grenadines imagery. The popular London black cabs will act as roving billboards across the city of London over the next 12 months, promoting the destination and the convenient Virgin Atlantic flight from London Heathrow (LHR) to Argyle International Airport (SVD). The campaign coincides with SVG’s inclusion in Virgin Atlantic’s May 2025 digital Caribbean campaign on Skyscanner.
The delegation to the UK included, CEO of the SVG Tourism Authority, Annette Mark; Director of Sales UK and Europe, Natasha Anderson and Senior Digital Market Officer, Jamali Jack.
