New Aviation Security Fee Threatens Tourism Competitiveness

Belize is already known as an expensive destination, and tourism stakeholders fear a new domestic travel fee could make it even harder to compete. The Belize Tourism Industry Association is pushing back against a ten-dollar aviation security fee introduced in early August. BTIA President Efren Perez says every additional charge makes Belize more costly, while destinations in neighboring Mexico offer similar experiences for less.

 

Efren Perez, President, BTIA

“I have to make it very clear that the BTIA is completely against any increases at this time, be it through taxes or this fee. And the reason for that is because Belize is relatively considered as a high priced destination. If you are looking at air fares coming from the U.S. market, it is not a cheap airfare you will get in most instances. So adding a ten dollars might seem like just ten dollars. But if you are looking at a family coming in, five, six, people and on every leg they are paying that ten dollars it does accumulate. And when we look at for example the domestic travel, it is no longer a luxury item. The reality of it is that it is not only tourist traveling. The locals are also travelling and the locals are price sensitive.”

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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