North Coast Tourism numbers decreasing

[Lobo Tropical]

CAN tax

Lower the airport tax....when will this sink in???? It's the number one complaint yet it is never addressed.

Seamonkey,
Since you are Canadian I found taxes on Sunwing YUL-POP
Canadian taxes are always high, I don't know how much blame rests on the DR part I see $20 Dep.TX and $10 T.C. local.
Note NAVCAN Fuel surcharges on package bookings in addition.


MONTREAL [YUL] TO PUERTO PLATA [POP]
Unless otherwise stated, all values are in Canadian Dollars (CAD$) based on prevailing exchange rates. Sunwing Airlines is the carrier.
Canada Air Travellers’ Security Charge $ 25.91
YUL Airport Improvement Fee $ 25.00
QST $ 3.74
Airport Authority Fee $ 2.20
Airport Infrastructure Fee $ 35.86
CAB Airport Depature Tax $ 30.80
2% tax on D.R tax/Fees $ 1.38
Total Taxes and Fees $ 124.89
Payable locally: $20 USD departure tax, $10 USD tourist card
For Package bookings, additional NAVCAN fees, Fuel Surcharges, and other fees totalling between $205 and $272 also apply.

Taxes and fees breakdown - Sunwing.ca

 

[Richard Alberto]

For many years the rumors have had it that the powers that be, have stalled the evolution of tourism in the southwest due to
the strength of influences in PC. Whether this is the recent tourist demise of POP and surrounding areas may not be far from
the truth.

But have no proof to that or privy to that type of confirmation.

 

[smitty777]

Could it be the single males are finding out Santiago and Santo Domingo have a lot more options and the women are cheaper? When I lived in Los Jardines I seen a few sex tourists trickling in. I hope Santiago doesn't turn into the next Sosua. Being over ran by sex tourist will ruin the city's charm.
On the other hand the NC did it to themselves. Its just not as fun as it used to be there and everyone is trying to hustle you.

 

[Robert]

A Dominican traveling on a USA passport is considered a tourist, although in many cases. they are clearly not.

Speak to someone like Conchman of Ocean World, he will give you the reality of the decline in tourism on the North Coast, as opposed to "fudged" numbers by the Government.

In recent years, the North Coast survived on the overspill from Punta Cana.

Single male or sex tourism doesn't even register in % terms when you talk about tourism as a whole in the DR. It's nothing, compared to family and all-inclusive tourism. Only the whore mongers think they make a significant impact on DR tourism, which is clearly not true.

 

[beeza]

Remember Danilo's manifesto of wanting 10 million tourists per year? Where were they all going to go? Punta Cana? Well it seems that way. I have no idea on the capacity of PUJ these days, but I doubt it's up to 10m yet.

In the mean time POP is languishing like a carcass on the savannah. The lions ate first, then the hyenas, now all that's left are scraps for the bugs to clear up. The lions have moved on to their new prey.......sunning itself on the beach in Punta Cana!

 

[Olly]

Robert,
The team estimates from figures that are available that just over 2% of the "tourists" are here for the sex trade DR wide and on the north coast it is just under 7% but down from last year.

Olly and the Team

 

[the gorgon]

Robert,
The team estimates from figures that are available that just over 2% of the "tourists" are here for the sex trade DR wide and on the north coast it is just under 7% but down from last year.

Olly and the Team

Olly, where are these figures "available" ? who compiles them, and what is the methodology?

what is the relative spend between an AI tourist and a guy who comes with the intention of spending the bulk of his money on trim?

what is the effective value to the LOCAL economy of the money spent on tang as opposed to the AI revenues?

 

[PeterInBrat]

What I'm seeing are arbitrary data points being tossed around with no one really able to analyse them. Someone should take an analysis done elsewhere, then treat it like a Mad-Libs game to format it for an analysis for the DR.

In this report from Vermont, it say how many hotels there are in the state(1,027) how many rooms(26,098), and the estimated annual revenue for the hotels($667 million). Do a little math and you can see that on average the hotel rooms generated about $25,000/year each revenue. Seems to me they're doing OK. Makes me wonder what the figures per room in the DR would be.

So take this report, white out the names and numbers for Vermont and change them to Dominican ones.
http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/bitstream/21618/1/sp99li02.pdf

The methodology is out there.

 

[the gorgon]

What I'm seeing are arbitrary data points being tossed around with no one really able to analyse them. Someone should take an analysis done elsewhere, then treat it like a Mad-Libs game to format it for an analysis for the DR.

In this report from Vermont, it say how many hotels there are in the state(1,027) how many rooms(26,098), and the estimated annual revenue for the hotels($667 million). Do a little math and you can see that on average the hotel rooms generated about $25,000/year each revenue. Seems to me they're doing OK. Makes me wonder what the figures per room in the DR would be.

So take this report, white out the names and numbers for Vermont and change them to Dominican ones.
http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/bitstream/21618/1/sp99li02.pdf

The methodology is out there.

methodological research is work. the Dominican Tourist Board, and every other department reporting statistics, just pluck figures out their butts, which have zero connection to reality. anybody who claims they have inflation figures to two decimal points is full of prunes.

 

[Maco]

windeguy , Peter
This is perhaps an incomplete picture. No account is taken of those coming into STI - Ciboa- if you add these numbers in then you get almost the same number as last year from January to September. - 2013 - 412,440 : 2012 - 411747.
It is not always clear whether those comimg to STI also come on to POP but most are from USA so it is a reasoanalbe assumption.

What is more interesting is that over the same period last year the number of unassociated male passemgers has dropped by 13% . I use this term as it is not possible to identify what the purpose of the visit is from the statistics other than there are more males than females coming to the north coast.

There is a lot more too but the picture above is incomplete.

Olly and the Team

I believe you are corrct Olly. I use to always fly into POP but now its sooo expensive that my buddys and I always fly into Santiago and drive the 1 1/2 hours to Cabarete/Sosua area. The extra couple of hundred dollars saved is better spent on me and my vacation them giving it to the airlines. This trend will continue until the Dom. Govt. changes what it charges airlines in POP....

 

[dv8]

This would only be relevant if the number has changed.

exactly my point. the number of arrivals does not equal the number of tourist in that said area. lots of AI tourist who arrive to DR from the countries that do not have direct flights to DR (think eastern europe) fly to whatever destination offered by associated charter flights. then they are packed to buses and driven to the hotel.

 

[Koreano]

I like north coast not because it has best hotels because it's cheap and closer from STI. The way I see it is all the AI in north need major change as they are carbon copy of each other. I've been to almost 80% of AI in north coast in my short period of time staying here. And the difference between one to next down the line isn't that much. Sure one is bigger then the next but if you've seen one, next one down the line is basically same as the last one. Unless you don't like change, I don't see folks from up north or EU coming back for the third time.

For past few times, I got away from AI and it served my needs well. I did spent extra here and there for food and drinks but quality I get over the AI makes up for the extra that I've paid. If there's way they can channel that and perhaps offer something different and better then AI, I can see some of the good local business survive.

 

[Robert]

Robert,
The team estimates from figures that are available that just over 2% of the "tourists" are here for the sex trade DR wide and on the north coast it is just under 7% but down from last year.

Olly and the Team

Your numbers are based on what? Post the stats and the sources.

Have you been to Punta Cana, Samana or La Romana lately?

 

[Olly]

Robert,
You know the source of the data but I am not prepared to share the analysis with you other that the Team has been working on this for over three years now.

Olly and the Team

 

[Olly]

Robert ,

CB = Banco Central de la Repblica Dominicana

Olly and the Team

 

[hammerdown]

Robert ,

CB = Banco Central de la Repblica Dominicana

Olly and the Team

Isn't that the same guys that are saying the economy is growing by leaps and bounds......I've been on the NC for 10 yrs and every year after 2004 tourism has decreased.....explain 7 big resorts closing in the Cabarete area alone......
I could name them, but, well, you should know which ones they are, as you have all the stats!

 

[kkelley31]

I am a first time poster and would like to know the Local CD rates and where is a nice place to live. thanks for any replies

 

[Eddy]

Tourism is down period. No matter what phony figures the Gov. comes up with, the NC is f*cked.

 

[hammerdown]

Tourism is down period. No matter what phony figures the Gov. comes up with, the NC is f*cked.

Totally agree with you on this.

Now no one has ever commented on this.............

Is it possible that the gobmint is purposely pushing tourismo down on the NC, to drive the property values down, so people sell out and then the govmint, or one of their crones, comes in and buys everything up at cheapy prices and produces another PC area.
A friend told me of this scenario, (owner of a big finca just outside of Sosua), and he was telling me of politicos buying up big farms around the Cabarete / Sosua / Puerto Plata areas. This is just a thought, but by the looks of how gobmint is playing with this area, something to think about..........

 

[Luperon]

Robert,
The team estimates from figures that are available that just over 2% of the "tourists" are here for the sex trade DR wide and on the north coast it is just under 7% but down from last year.

Olly and the Team

I would assume your figures are low. I doubt it counts the female sex tourists, who may be at the A1. Also, some of those family husbands at the a1's might be here to get "trim" on the side. I knew a guy that did that almost under the nose of his wife without ever leaving the a1.