Victoria Chalmers

As Montserrat continues to boost its tourism offerings, more attention is being focused on improving standards. Parliamentary Secretary Hon. Crenston Buffonge says for this reason, the Tourism Authority has trained 46 public and private sector workers in customer service, and conducted tour and taxi training to strengthen their service delivery. This is the continuation of a process of developing the island’s tourism standards to ensure quality assurance across the board. He says the training is not limited to food and beverage, or the accommodation sectors, but also the quality of Montserrat’s cultural events and the conditions of tourism sites across the country. The Tourism Authority is also stepping up its marketing and promotion efforts. As a result, its marketing reach has expanded significantly, including on Facebook, which alone, has achieved 4.6 million views and 213,000 reach. The MTA has also partnered with major media outlets, including Mail Online in the UK, The Saturday Times, and publications across Canada and the United States. Looking ahead, the Parliamentary Secretary says they are launching new promotional videos highlighting St. Patrick’s Festival, and expanding its social media campaigns for Carnival 2025. Other initiatives are the Volcano Heritage Trail, and a collaboration with the Montserrat Volcano Observatory and the Montserrat National Trust in establishing the UNESCO Global and Geoparks initiatives. The MTA is also working with the Department of Environment on the Protect, Preserve and Prosper campaigns, including youth tree planting and beach cleanups across the country. Having established the natural tourism products, Mr. Buffonge says the focus now must be the introduction of man-made attractions that complements, not take away from, these national assets. In this vein, he announced plans for a forest zip-lines and a beach-side turtle hatchery, which would allow tourists to be a part of Montserrat’s conservation drive.