Return of the St Kitts Music Festival is Vital for Boosting Stay-Overs Says, Minister Grant
Basseterre, St. Kitts, February 25, 2022 (SKNIS): The return of the St. Kitts Music Festival (SKMF) this summer is part of a strategy by the Ministry of Tourism and the St. Kitts Tourism Authority to maximise capacity on incoming aircraft and to boost stay-over visitors.
Minister of Tourism, the Honourable Lindsay Grant, summed up the goal of the strategy as “getting heads in our beds”, as promotional activities seek to capitalize on the “pent up demand” for travel by persons living in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.
At a press conference on February 23, 2022, at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort, Minister Grant said that every effort is being made to create a welcoming and secured environment when the event is held in June 2022.
“I am pleased to announce that the Ministry of Tourism and the St. Kitts Music Festival Committee, the [National] COVID-19 Task Force and the Ministry of Health are working together for a safe hosting of the St. Kitts Music Festival for the period June 23 to 25,” he said.
Health authorities successfully contained four waves of community spread of the virus since 2020. They also developed robust protocols for effectively hosting international events with the 2021 Caribbean Premier League T20 tournament last September being a model of success. The best practices and updated guidelines will be used in designing the plan for the festival.
Minister Grant indicated that the local economy is on the rebound after the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the SKMF fits perfectly into this plan.
“The objective of the festival since its inception is to generate business during the slow period of the year with the usual decrease in our summer cruise traffic added to the hiatus of our seasonal flights, this event is key to maintaining and rebuilding momentum,” he stated.
The SKMF returns this year after being cancelled in 2020 and 2021 as a result of the global health emergency.
