What does regular schedule by WestJet mean for St. Maarten?
• Additional numbers to fill hotel rooms • Additional shoppers for our stores and business establishments • Increased revenues for the airport and handling agents. This in turn is good news for the economy. Figures made available by the St. Maarten Tourism Bureau, indicate total expenditures by U.S. and Canadian visitors to St. Maarten, during the first 6 months of this year amounting to over 39 million U.S. dollars! If we look at projections now, we need to take into account an 80 percent projected load factor of seating capacity on WestJet flights. In terms of income for St. Maarten, it would mean an increase of almost 50 percent of what we bring in annually from the Canadian market. Every time, a WestJet flight lands here, St. Maarten earns income from: • The sale of fuel • Landing fees • Passenger handling fees • Ground handling fees • Navigation fees • Sita- CUTE fees • Passenger screening fees • Airport departure taxes • Increased hotel room occupancy • Increased spending at rest
