TO: Hon. Manuel Heredia, Minister of Tourism Civil Aviation and Culture
Ms. Seleni Matus, Director of the Belize Tourism Board
Lloyd Enriquez, Director of Destination Planning
FROM: Fort Street Tourism Zone – Tour operators & tour guides
We, as tour operators and tour guides who work in the Fort Street Tourism Zone on the outside, have decided to come together as one unit to voice our displeasure to the Belize Tourism Board of the discrepancies and challenges we are now faced with since the implementation of the Tourism Zone a few weeks ago.
After having a meeting with representatives of the five tour operators and tour guides whose names are on the rotation list at the gates at Tourist Village, we have drafted a number of concerns which we feel need urgent attention that must be addressed by the relevant authorities, if there is to be any success and progress at the F.S.T.Z.
We have come to the conclusion that as stakeholders in the tourism industry, we have become disenfranchised and marginalized within the new zone ever since its inception. It appears from our vantage point that other groups are given special privilege within the zone to do tours and transfers for cruise ship passengers without proper license and qualification.
As tour operators and guides, we have invested our money and time to be a part of the tourism industry of Belize. Just like every tour operator and guide in this country, we are required to pay a substantial amount of money annually to retain our licenses from the Belize Tourism Board.
Having done all the training and meeting all the requirements, we believe that we should be given the privilege to work in the zone without having to compete with others who are untrained and do not contribute financially to the Board. This is a very important situation that must be rectified if we, as a country, are to compete regionally and globally, in ensuring that our visitors who come to our shore get the best possible experience.
Another sticking point that needs addressing is regarding the dispatchers. It appears that these people are not properly trained and hence, cannot identify the real needs of the tourist coming out of the village. We think that the dispatcher should be assisted by the tour operator or his sales representative who is next in line on the rotation at the gates.
This will ensure that the visitors who want a tour get that service from the appropriate personnel. Also, it is important that there is proper regulation within the zone for those who choose to sell tours away from the gates.
For a more professional marketing strategy, the people who should approach the tourist to sell tours should be tour guides working under an operator within the zone.
We want to assure the Belize Tourist Board that we are fully on board and embrace this new concept known as the Fort Street Tourism Zone. As stakeholders in the industry, we believe it is critical that the authorities take our concerns very seriously and that it does not fall on deaf ears.
To show solidarity, we have attached signatures of all tour operators and tour guides who work outside the Tourist Village within the zone, as we all share the same sentiments. We intend to unionize to ensure that these and other very important issues are addressed in a swift and meaningful fashion.
These endorsements are from legal and licensed members of the tourism Industry whose livelihood has been affected negatively due to the management deficiencies in the F.S.T.Z.
Thanks for your attention and we look forward to working with you to address these issues amicably.
Signed
FSTZ Tour Operators & Tour guides
(Ed. NOTE: We have received an email with 45 signatures purporting to be those of the disaffected guides and operators.)