Bahamas Hotel & Tourism Association

An Airbnb executive yesterday said it was critical to expose Bahamian students to tourism opportunities as part of its responsibility as a “21st century company”.

Chloe Burke, the vacation rental facilitator’s public policy associate with responsibility for the Caribbean and Central America, teamed with the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) to host a special assembly at CC Sweeting High School to highlight potential careers with Airbnb.

Airbnb has focused on developing experiences across the islands of The Bahamas and not simply in New Providence, Airbnb Public Policy Associate for the Caribbean and Central America Chloe Burke told the media yesterday following the launch of the company’s High School Tourism Education Initiative with the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) and the Ministry of Education (MOE).

Major Nassau/Paradise Island resorts shrugged off a modest one percent room revenue fall-off in December to post an 18 percent gain for the 2019 full year, it was revealed yesterday.

The Central Bank of The Bahamas, in its monthly economic update for January 2020, revealed that the post-Hurricane Dorian impact had only slightly weakened the gains posted by New Providence’s tourism industry earlier in the year.

The Central Bank of The Bahamas (CBOB) expects the domestic economy to post flat results in 2020, with a possible recovery beginning in 2021 as the country rebounds from Hurricane Dorian, though the bank is monitoring the economic risks that could come with the growing threat of the coronavirus to global economic activity and travel.