GB READIES FOR SPRING BREAK – Pictured from left are Anika Williams – Group Officer, Group and Events, Ministry of Tourism Freeport; Omar A. Isaacs, Marketing Officer Sports Tourism & Special Events; Clement Knowles, Sales Representative Burns House Group of Companies; Thelma Sturrup, Project Manager, Ministry of Tourism; Liz Clifford, StudentCity.Com; Marcella Perpaul, Xanadu Beach Front Desk Supervisor, Sgt. Bowe, Royal Bahamas Police Force; Toni Wilson, Activities Director Xanadu Beach. Back row standing – Peter Dorsett, Xanadu Beach Controller; Pernell Poitier, Burns House Group of Companies; Charlie Robbins, Sports Tourism, Ministry of Tourism. (Photo/Vandyke Hepburn)
By Simon Lewis
FREEPORT, Grand Bahama – Officials at the Ministry of Tourism announced Monday that the island of Grand Bahama will again play host to a large number of Spring Breakers during the month of March and April.
Thelma Sturrup, Projects Manager for Groups and Events at the Ministry of Tourism said while Spring Breakers will participate in many of the on-island activities, Tourism has arranged a programme specifically for the visitors dubbed the Konk and Kalik Spring Break Festival.
According to Ms. Sturrup, the spring breakers will be treated to fun filled activities that include beach volleyball, dance competition, sack races, beach relay and more.
“These activities have been designed to generate camaraderie and friendly island competition among the spring breakers in a beach setting, keeping in mind that the visitors says the number one reason for visiting Grand Bahama island is the beaches,” Ms. Sturrup stated.
She informed that the key operator this year is studentcity.com which is expected to bring in just over 2500 students during the season.
“Additionally there are other small operators that will bring in some of the business and of course students will also come individually and not as a part of an organized group. We will target all students so that we can extend to them the Konk and Kalik Spring Break experience,” she stated.
Ms. Sturrup also advised that Xanadu Beach Resort has partnered with the Ministry of Tourism this year and will be the host site for the Konk and Kalik Festival.
She also informed that the Konk and Kalik Festival has been added to the planned activities of the studentcity.com vacation package, which allows for the bulk of the spring breakers to attend the event. The beach festival is also open to other spring breakers who may have booked their vacations through other mediums.
“Our purpose today is to share with the community the Ministry of Tourism’s initiative and to seek the support of the community by ensuring that the visiting students will have such a grand time, that they will come back for years into adulthood for their weddings, honeymoons, business meetings, etcetera so that the economic benefit of hosting this influential group will be long lasting,” she stated.
She also took the opportunity to remind residents that spring breakers are visitors to our country and as such, should be treated with courtesy and Bahamian hospitality.
Also attending Monday’s press briefing at the Ministry of Tourism were executives from Burns House, distributors of Kalik, senior management from Xanadu Beach Resort and officials from the Royal Bahamas Police Force who are also heightening their effort to ensure visitor safety.
