There is something both impressive and frustrating about looking at the latest 2023-2024 Observatoire du Tourisme report from St. Barths. While our neighboring island has released an in-depth, data-driven analysis of its tourism sector, St. Maarten remains silent, unable to even provide basic fourth-quarter statistics for 2024. The difference is staggering. In St. Barths, tourism authorities offer comprehensive insights into visitor origins, flight connections, hotel occupancy, and even spending trends. They can pinpoint which U.S. states send the most tourists, how travelers arrive, and where they prefer to stay. This level of transparency allows for smarter policymaking, targeted marketing, and…
Author: The Publisher
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PHILIPSBURG — The hub function of Princess Juliana International Airport may be under pressure due to competition from neighboring islands, but it still remains the launchpad for trips to the island if St. Barthélemy. This appears from the Observatoire du Tourisme, a detailed 59-page report about the state of tourism on St. Barths. In 2023, the St. Barths Airport Remy de Haenen received 203,754 arrivals and 58.98 percent of them came in through the Princess Juliana International SXM Airport of St. Maarten. The arrivals-number shows a decline compared to 2022 (6.9%), but it stands 10.5% above 2019, the pre-pandemic year.…
PHILIPSBURG/GUSTAVIA — As the Caribavia 2025 Aviation Conference & Retreat, scheduled for June 10-12, 2025, in St. Barths, prepares to welcome aviation and tourism industry leaders, a key focus will be on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its transformative role in air travel and tourism. The announcement that Raéd Alexander Ayyad, an expert in AI-driven innovation and former Senior IT Project Manager at Southwest Airlines and CITI Bank Group, will deliver a keynote on AI’s impact in aviation and tourism is particularly timely as AirStMaarten advances its plans for AI-powered travel solutions through its next-generation booking system—AirSXM 3.0. For years, AirStMaarten…
A recent article published by The People’s Tribune, “St. Maarten’s diminishing regional hub role, Minister’s presence at Routes has added significance,” highlights an urgent and growing challenge for St. Maarten’s aviation sector. The island’s long-standing dominance as a regional hub for neighboring islands like Anguilla, Nevis, Tortola, and Dominica is eroding, primarily due to the rise of direct flights from the U.S. to these destinations and their investments in airport infrastructure. A reader recently shared a compelling commentary with me on this matter, arguing that SXM’s loss of hub status was inevitable given its prolonged reconstruction period post-Hurricane Irma and…
PHILIPSBURG — The National Payment Council (NPC), a platform for payment system policy dialogue focused in its second meeting in St. Maarten on ways to reduce bank card transaction fees. The NPC is chaired by the Central Bank of Curacao and St. Maarten (CBCS). It notes that due to the use of Master en Visa cards, payments at local stores are not always processed as local transactions. This results in higher fees. The CBCS says that it is essential to create a uniform configuration of payment equipment (like point-of-sale machines) and ATMs. Participants in the NPC are, apart from the…
By Hilbert Haar Why anybody would break the law by buying votes in an attempt to capture a coveted seat in St. Maarten’s parliament is not a great mystery. Those seats are worth a lot of money, because MPs receive roughly $10,000 per month during their tenure. If they keep their seat for a full term of four years this means that they are looking at an income of $480,000. This simple fact explains why aspiring politicians try again and again to buy their way into parliament. In the past, those who were caught for buying votes received relatively light…
PHILIPSBURG — The Court in First Instance sentenced former police officer and former member of parliament Akeem Arrindell to an 18-month prison sentence for vote buying during the January 2024 elections. The court also banned Arrindell from holding public functions and from participating in elections for 78 months – 6.5 years. This is the harshest sentence for election fraud in recent history. In February 2018 former MP Silvio Matser was also found guilty of buying votes, but the court at the time sentenced him to just 8 months of imprisonment, with 2 months suspended, while it took away Matser’s right…
The European Right to Repair: What Does This Mean for Consumers in Sint Maarten? Introduction Dear consumers of Sint Maarten, there is an important development in European consumer law that may also have consequences for you: the “right to repair.” This new regulation could be relevant for Sint Maarten through the concordance principle. What is the Right to Repair? The right to repair means that sellers are obligated to repair products when possible, instead of immediately proceeding with replacement or refund. This fits within the framework of sustainability and consumer protection. Local Legislation In Sint Maarten, consumer rights are protected…
PHILIPSBURG — The rescue plan for embattled insurance company ENNIA is underway. The Central Bank of Curacao and St. Maarten (CBCS) announced the launch of a new entity per January 1, 2025. The Central Bank describes it in a press release as “a solvent and independently functioning insurance group.” The new group consists of four companies that have licenses from the CBCS and the Nederlandsche Bank (DNB). The newly created entity is Ennia Holding NV, the shareholder of Ennia Leven, Ennia Caribe Schade and Ennia Caribe zorg. The new Ennia group “works under sustainable ownership and is adequately capitalized,” the…
St. Maarten’s yachting industry is evolving rapidly, driving economic benefits that extend across multiple sectors. The island’s strategic investments and unique appeal have positioned it as a premier destination for yachts, superyachts, and multihulls, ensuring its continued relevance in a competitive global market. A recent Economic Impact Study underscores the vital role of the yachting sector in St. Maarten’s economy. Visiting yachts, superyachts, and regattas collectively contribute an impressive $165,497,230 annually, representing 11.1% of the island’s GDP. This activity generates $162 million in added value to the local economy and supports 3,269 jobs. The ripple effect is profound: for every…
