By Belize Live News Staff: On Ambergris Caye, the tourism slowdown is being felt on the ground.
In San Pedro Town, several beachfront restaurants are currently closed. Some businesses have shut their doors temporarily for the low season, while others are staying open despite fewer visitors. Downtown businesses are also reporting a drop in sales.
“It has been a different season this year. Things are slow, and we are just trying to stay afloat,” one local business owner said.
The numbers back it up. Minister of Tourism Anthony Mahler has confirmed that overnight arrivals fell between June and August, with June down 5 percent compared to last year. He described August as especially soft, after five straight months of growth to start the year.
Now, island businesses are pinning their hopes on the high season.
“We hope to see a difference in the upcoming months, and hopefully more tourists visit the island with these new flights scheduled to come to Belize,” the proprietor said.
Those flights are coming. Six new services are scheduled, including BermudAir nonstop routes from Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Raleigh Durham and Boston. United Airlines is expected to add more service from San Francisco, Chicago and Denver.
The Government is also working to land a direct flight from Europe, which would open a major new market for destinations like San Pedro.
Mahler is also pushing sports tourism as a long term answer to the low season, saying Belize needs better facilities to host more events during the slower months.
For now, San Pedro waits. The high season usually starts around mid November and peaks from December through April. For many island businesses, it cannot come soon enough.
