Arrivals to Bermuda increased steadily in 2011 and Bermudan hotels became fuller and fuller throughout the year.
The Bermudan tourism minister has recently announced that he is excited and eager about the future of tourism in the Caribbean paradise, whilst keeping a level of anxiety.
The reason is that, although the figures on the whole have been extremely promising, the bed nights of hotels rate have been down by 0.9%. In other words, although more people came to Bermuda in 2011, less people stayed overnight in hotels.
This is a reason to be anxious, as hotels are vital to the tourism industry of any country. The dropping number of overnight stays is probably due to a rising number of cruise ship arrivals, with cruise ship visitors being 19% larger in numbers. Cruise ship passengers often stay for just a few hours.
Overall, 70.000 more tourists came to Bermudan shores in 2011 in comparison with the previous year. This equaled a rise of 12% for total incoming visits; with the tourist board claiming the best is yet to come.
Advertising campaigns and improved marketing, along with improved financial conditions around the globe, have led to renewed optimism in Bermuda. Arrivals by air were up 2%, yet sea travel proved more promising. The most encouraging sector was that of convention incentive tourism, with a massive rise of 116%.
In general, the American and mainland European markets were on the up, whereas the British and Canadian markets took a little bit of a nosedive. This means the Bermudans know where to focus in future campaigns to keep the figures rising.