THE Department of Tourism (DoT) and Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG) are looking at a ‘Sports Tourism Agenda 2019-2021’.

The bodies yesterday brought together a number of sports administrators, media personnel and tourism agencies at the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA), Liliendaal to craft the way forward for the plan.

“Guyana’s tourism offering is primarily nature-based and even though that is what we seek to promote, there are still a number of areas where there are tremendous opportunities for growth, one of which is sports tourism,” Minister of Business, Hemraj Ramkumar, declared as he delivered remarks during the event’s opening ceremony.

“According to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), sports tourism is one of the fastest growing sectors in tourism. If Guyana is going to position itself to capture a greater share of global demand then we have got to be deliberate in our actions and today’s activity is another step in that direction; where we bring key stakeholders together to chart a course for maximising the benefits to be derived.”

In 2017 the Department of Tourism held its first two Sports Tourism Workshops and Seminar, in a conscious effort to officially bring the tourism agencies and the varying sporting bodies together, since sporting events in Guyana bring thousands of visitors to the country.

Ever since DoT and THAG have taken a more official role in partnering with sports administrators whenever international or regional sports events are held in Guyana, also to market the country’s varying tourism opportunities.

Later this month the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) is scheduled to host a FIFA Conference on Development at the Guyana Marriott, while the spotlight is also on Guyana’s preparations for the hosting of the 2021 CARIFTA Games.

THAG president Mitra Ramkumar explained that the aim of the agenda is to work out a schedule of upcoming events in a way to ensure that the events carry a tourism aspect.
“It’s about being able to have the visitors participate more, and spend more and stay longer at the destination, so that area is what we’re working on,” Ramkumar said.

“If we have a schedule from now for 2019 – 2021 and we know of all the sporting events that are coming up, then we can plan and be able to have packages readily available; then we can inform the fans and everyone coming for these events to say these are the things that they can participate in.”

Ramkumar noted that there exists a wide array of options that the tourism industry can offer, that can be incorporated into or work alongside an event whenever there is free time for those attending.

“There might be an off day, there might be a free afternoon and we want to be there to share this information and say this is what is available for you to do and it doesn’t have to take much. A trip to Kaieteur Falls is four hours or you can do an Essequibo River tour where you can touch a number of resorts in one day. You can visit Fort Island and learn about the rich Dutch history.

“You can do a walking tour around Georgetown or an aerial tour of Georgetown, which is just 15 minutes. So these are some of the packages that we want to develop for sports tourism, for all the events we’re looking at,” Ramkumar said.

Given the rise that Guyana’s tourism has seen over the past few years, particularly with the attention from Guyana being named the “World’s Best Ecotourism Destination”, the country continues to see increasing number of visitors.

The impending oil and gas industry is also a major pull factor. All across the country tourism focus is being heightened.

“This workshop is both significant and opportune. It comes at a time when tourism in Guyana is on an upward trajectory – Guyana has been experiencing double-digit growth in visitor arrivals over the past three years.

“Our administrative regions have heightened their tourism awareness and are finding it fit to set up tourism committees to advance their regions tourism potential,” Ramkumar said.