Mélange Travel & Lifestyle Magazine April 2017 | Page 220

Is Grenada seeking
to expand its source
markets and if yes, can
you share with us the
new markets you are
hoping to attract?
We are always seeking to
expand our source markets,
and each market has room for
growth. The performance of
our source markets- the United
States, the United Kingdom,
Canada, Germany and Wider
Europe, the Caribbean - is
constantly monitored, and the
marketing team at the Grenada
Tourism Authority are always
seeking new and innovative
ways to stimulate growth in our
source markets, as well as attract
visitors from new markets, such
as other Caribbean islands.
Within Canada, specifically,
we are seeing a lot of interest
from Quebec, and are hoping
to stimulate more arrivals from
this province, as well as from the
west coast.
What would you say
are the challenges your
country faces, if any, to
its tourism growth?
All destinations, in one way
or another, face obstacles
to tourism growth, notably
competition from other
islands. Our major challenge is
growing airlift. We are one of
the southernmost islands and
thus it takes longer to reach
us, so adequate airlift remains
a challenge for us that we are
most certainly addressing in
every way possible. We are
working on increasing not only
the frequency of flights, but
airline options and also variety
of gateways.
What are some of the
special events and
festivals held in Grenada
that you will like to
invite our readers to
travel to the island to
experience?
Grenada is home to some
“not-to-be-missed” events
throughout the year. The
month of May is particularly
action-packed, with the
Grenada Chocolate Festival
and the Pure Grenada Music
Festival both happening here.
The Chocolate Festival is a
celebration of Grenada’s unique,
award-winning, dark chocolate
and features chocolate-based
activities such as cooking
demonstrations, beach parties,
yoga sessions, spa sessions,
art exhibits, and lectures from
professionals.
The Music Festival is an exciting,
multiple-location, multiple-
genre outdoor music festival
with celebrated international
and local acts.
In August, we invite everyone
to experience Grenada’s
Carnival, referred to as
‘Spicemas’- the best Carnival
in the Caribbean and also the
last Carnival to take place in
the Caribbean for the year. An
explosion of sound and colour,
Spicemas is one of the most
joyous events held in Grenada
every year. Visitors and locals
alike turn out in droves for
“Monday Night Mas”, a glow-
in-the-dark extravaganza that
can be experienced only in
Grenada during Spicemas. We
have various histories behind
each element of our C