Dominica to gain from Silver Beach/Marriott Partnership

13 January 2017 | Tags: Dominica Resort

Silver Beach Resort and Spa’s partnership with Marriott International will boost Dominica’s potential for attracting larger quantities of tourists to the island.

With more than 100 million members, Marriott International boasts the largest loyalty rewards programme internationally. The programme presents the perfect opportunity for Silver Beach Resort and Spa to directly target loyal Marriott members with promotions encouraging travel to Dominica.

“If we are doing a promotion for Independence Celebrations, as part of the Marriott family we can now email 100 million people around the world, invite them to visit Dominica and Silver Beach to participate in our Independence Celebration, and offer them incentives to do so,” said Dr. Michael Lawrence, a director at Silver Beach Development – the developer of the resort.

“Suppose we wish to target only a subset of the 100 Million, who enjoy hiking, then that’s also possible through the Marriott members program.  This presents tremendous opportunities for Dominica.  It really places us on the world stage!”

Lawrence’s sentiments are seconded by Marriott’s Director for Development of the Caribbean and Latin America, Bojan Kumer. “You can reach out to these 100 million members and promote this hotel, and promote Dominica as a luxury hotel destination in the Caribbean,” he said.

The tremendous opportunity for global promotion of Dominica to Marriott’s 100 million loyalty members is one that is enthusiastically embraced by the country’s Prime Minister, Hon. Roosevelt Skerrit.

Skerrit, who spoke at Silver Beach Resort and Spa’s brand announcement ceremony on January 9, said his vision for taking Dominica to the next level had always included the incorporation of major hotel brands, such as Marriott International.

“It is important that we do everything in our power as a nation to have this project started and completed on time, so that the Marriott brand can be used for the marketing of our country the world over,” the Prime Minister said.

“Nature’s natural attributes have served us well over the years, but we believe that the incorporation of international brands, such as Marriott, shall aid greatly in defining and redefining our island as a must-see locale in the Caribbean and the western world.”

Hon. Robert Tonge, Dominica’s Minister for Tourism and Urban Renewal, anticipates being able to use analytics to specifically target those Marriott loyalty members, who are in the market for exactly what the country has to offer.

“I am confident that the Marriott brand, with over 6,000 properties in 120 countries, will find Dominica to be one of the most sought after locations. Our offering of a combination of heritage, cultural, urban and environmental experiences, will be a hit with guests,” Tonge said.

As has been the experience with the introduction of international brands to smaller Caribbean islands in the past, it is anticipated that destination marketing to Marriott’s loyalty members will also bring business to other hotels on island. Loyalty members impressed with the island, who for whatever reason may not be able to stay at Silver Beach Resort and Spa, could turn their attention to other hotels on island for accommodation.

Dominica’s government has established a special fund to help bring the island’s existing hotel stock up to desired quality levels. Fifteen million dollars of readily available financing was allocated in the 2017 fiscal budget, which existing hotels and restaurants can access to help upgrade their properties.

With such an anticipated boost to the island’s tourist arrivals, the official opening of Silver Beach Resort and Spa in 2019, is much awaited.