When Will They Start Shutting Down?

[sail7seas]

With the state of the economy and no end in sight, with the end of cruise season approaching quickly (all HAL ships as well as many others leaving the Caribbean for about 6 months), how many of the islands jewelry, t-shirt and souvenir shops etc will close down....probably permanently? How many tour operators will go out of business?

 

It makes me sad but there cannot possibly be enough business now seeing as people are being careful with the budgets and the ships are still coming in. Wiith the prospect of ships repositioning in the coming weeks, I suspect many of the locals are not going to be able to keep their businesses going.

 

Makes me sad for them.

[Krazy Kruizers]

There is already a jewelry store at Crown Bay that had a shop in town as well -- both shops are closing down for good.

Only the big shops like Diamonds International will survive -- but I see them cutting back on the number of stores they will have in each port.

Sad to say -- but the weakening economy will be affecting everyone everywhere.

[kryos]

With the state of the economy and no end in sight, with the end of cruise season approaching quickly (all HAL ships as well as many others leaving the Caribbean for about 6 months), how many of the islands jewelry, t-shirt and souvenir shops etc will close down....probably permanently? How many tour operators will go out of business?

Why would they shut down? Not everyone visits those Caribbean islands by cruise. In fact, lots of people (maybe even more than arrive on cruise ships) visit those islands via land trips. They would keep the vendors in business, wouldn't they? Cruising is just one vacation option ... granted, a very popular one ... but not the only one. In fact, there are lots of people who argue against a cruise because of the limited amount of time you get to spend on an island when arriving by cruise ship. True, a cruise allows you to sample several islands, but you really don't get an appreciable amount of time on any one ... and that's precisely what a lot of people want.

 

To tell you the truth, if I didn't have a problem with long flights, I'd be taking more land vacations too. There are certain things you don't get to experience fully when you cruise ... things like a thorough immersion into that island's culture and flavor.

 

I think the vendors will be fine.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

['The Bear']

'Sail'--- I fear you may be right;--- we are already seeing protests in the French protectorates due to economic stress, and the perceived lack of concern by France itself.

 

This situation, presently felt in Martinique and Guadaloupe, might well become commonplace across the beautiful islands! Truly a sad situation! :(

 

I hope they can weather the impending storm !!

[kryos]

There is already a jewelry store at Crown Bay that had a shop in town as well -- both shops are closing down for good.

Only the big shops like Diamonds International will survive -- but I see them cutting back on the number of stores they will have in each port.

Sad to say -- but the weakening economy will be affecting everyone everywhere.

And I'd be willing to bet the economy is precisely the reason why they are closing down ... not the fact that cruise ships won't be calling there for six months.

 

I think people are simply spending less these days and expensive jewelry purchases are probably a prime target for spending reductions for most families. The island could be getting lots and lots of tourists ... even when the cruise ships are not calling there ... it's just that those tourists aren't buying what the jewelry store has on offer.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[pipedreams62]

I'm spending the summer there.

 

 

[sail7seas]

Kryos....... The point being business already stinks and now with thousands upon thousands of cruisers not visiting in the next six months, the situation will only be worse for business who depend upon tourist for livelihood. Tourists that either stay in resorts or come in on ships for the day. Tourism in the islands always decreases hugely in the summer but this summer with the horrid economy, they haven't been able to build enough reserve to ride out the slow months.

 

Many will close I fear and probably will not ever reopen.

More unemployed; more povery in the islands. It cannot be a good situation.

[Harry1954]

Kryos....... The point being business already stinks and now with thousands upon thousands of cruisers not visiting in the next six months, the situation will only be worse for business who depend upon tourist for livelihood. Tourists that either stay in resorts or come in on ships for the day. Tourism in the islands always decreases hugely in the summer but this summer with the horrid economy, they haven't been able to build enough reserve to ride out the slow months.

Many will close I fear and probably will not ever reopen.

More unemployed; more povery in the islands. It cannot be a good situation.

While I agree that it is a very bad situation and it saddens me too, this is akin to when they have hurricanes of some force hit them. We spent many years on St John and got to know the locals quite well. One season about 12 year or so ago, they sustained serious hurricane damage such that there was no tourism period. When we returned about 1 1/2 years later, they told us how they survived - fishing, each family reaching out to others in need - quite a gripping story. Bottom line to me is that they will survive albeit more closely tied to the products of the island itself. I would venture that the islands that are more socialistic will suffer more than those with more capitalism - might forebode things to come here.

harry

[Sage]

I think not only the shops will experience some problems, but I believe the cruise lines themselves may see major cutbacks as well with passengers.

[jhannah]

... big shops like Diamonds International will survive -- but I see them cutting back on the number of stores they will have in each port.

They should cut back/out all those slick ads that jam our cabin mail boxes! What a waste! (Of course, those have likely brought lots of business, so they can't be a waste to them ... but they are expensive to produce and are surely at a point of diminishing returns for producing them.)

[lettienets]

I think people arriving by ship or air would rather give up shopping than their trip.

[michmike]

I'd be interested to know how big a hit A.H. Riis took when the airline restrictions on bringing back booze took effect. It had to be MASSIVE.

[Oceanwench]

I think we'll be seeing a lot of souvenir shops, restaurants, etc. closing down in Florida as well.

In the past a lot of businesses have made enough money in season, so when summer came they could make it through the quiet months.

This year, things may be a lot different. Already we have had several restaurants close in our area, and it's still season!

[swedish weave]

This item was written by Johanna Jainchill, who covers cruising for Travel Weekly. Jainchill is serving as Guest Editor of The Cruise Log this week while USA TODAY Cruise Editor Gene Sloan is on vacation.

 

Mexico has delayed until to October 1 the implementation of a law that would levy a head tax of $5 per passenger on cruise passengers that visit Mexican ports.

 

Mexico's Ministry of Tourism was originally going to apply the tax beginning this summer, after the Senate approved it last November.

 

The tax is expected to generate approximately $30 million a year, Mexico said, 80% of which would go toward the infrastructure and maintenance of municipalities with cruise ports.

 

Does anybody know if this is still going to be implemented and what effect it will have on cruises to Mexico

[jhannah]

Does anybody know if this is still going to be implemented and what effect it will have on cruises to Mexico

The $50 levy Alaska piled on last year hasn't seemed to negatively affect bookings of cruises there. So I seriously doubt the Mexico levy will make any difference at all.

[sizzle_sisters]

Very true Ginny. I think the economy will kill more cruising, but also the vacation homes, banks and stores in all of the Caribbean. Don't think we've seen the worst yet.

[djhsolara]

While this is a very valid concern, we must also remember that while we are all in a bad economic situation, there are visitors from many other countries that are not in as "bad" of a situation as we are in the US. Remember too that some people will travel no matter what. Perhaps I'm living in a fantasy world, but although I know that the Caribbean will be slower from cruise traffic over the next few months, cruise traffic is not the only source of income to these shops.

[hulamoon]

In Hawaii we are loosing long time businesses. Good resturants, airlines and shops. Our international customers are not spending either. It is a worldwide financial meltdown.

 

During the first Gulf War, the Big Island was a ghost island. The 10 tourist that walked downtown were pounced upon. We used to have the sign on the way to the airport that said "last one out, turn out the lights." The island did bounce back more popular and prosperous than before.

 

This cycle is horrible, I don't know if the world will ever spin quite the same, but I do believe a lot of business will return in another form at the right time. Those that need to close, hopefully will find the next right career or business, with as little suffering as possible.

[Dolphins]

In light of the current sinking economy, how will the cuise lines be able to fill their ships every week as they continue to launch bigger mega ships? Does it make sense to build more ships when so many potential passengers are losing their jobs?

[mamaofami]

I think we'll be seeing a lot of souvenir shops, restaurants, etc. closing down in Florida as well.

In the past a lot of businesses have made enough money in season, so when summer came they could make it through the quiet months.

This year, things may be a lot different. Already we have had several restaurants close in our area, and it's still season!

 

I believe this will happen in many tourist areas in this country. Last year, the Berkshire area (Lenox, Great Barington,Lee,Stockbridge) had a terrible season. This year, it might be much worse.

[Sea King]

 

I think the vendors will be fine.

 

 

--rita

 

wish you were right Rita .. unfortunately, I see this problem 180 degrees south of you

 

the first thing to go in "a down economy is the "extras"

 

jewelry, souvenirs, cameras, watches, t-shirts and the rest are "extras" any way you want to slice the cake ..

 

the real question IMHO is not whether you'll see substantial closings but rather will you see these businesses come back

 

if you took a poll of shop/store owners in the islands right now, I have little doubt everyone's business is down

 

S7S has a point when she points out that once the "season" ends and the ships stop coming, things will get worse .. it's common sense .. cruise companies are offering "slashed packages" just to fill the ships .. the on- board earnings are unquestionably down because many are making a conscious choice: take a cruise and spend little or nothing on board or stay home

 

I don't believe in doom and gloom

 

I do believe in reality

 

the reality is this is the worst economy we've seen in 20+ years and it's world wide

 

the reality also is no one knows when we'll hit bottom

 

frightening but IMO true

[innlady1]

They should cut back/out all those slick ads that jam our cabin mail boxes! What a waste! (Of course, those have likely brought lots of business, so they can't be a waste to them ... but they are expensive to produce and are surely at a point of diminishing returns for producing them.)

 

I agree, Jim. It is such a waste of paper.

 

Having sad that, when we were in St. Thomas recently, I was in a fragrance store and asked the woman how business had been. She said they'd had a horrible season...

[suse]

Will cruising be cheap?:)

[FireIce0010]

It's hard to tell but IMHO some of the shops need to close down. Take St. Thomas for example. I know that Crown Bay has not been built up like Havensight but just walk through Havensight and see how many shops are basically like the one next door. I don't see the tour operators hurting as much as the shops but time will tell.

[innlady1]

It's hard to tell but IMHO some of the shops need to close down. Take St. Thomas for example. I know that Crown Bay has not been built up like Havensight but just walk through Havensight and see how many shops are basically like the one next door. I don't see the tour operators hurting as much as the shops but time will tell.

 

I think you're right. If people are cruising, they'll still take shore excursions. It's the shopping that will suffer...with jewelry being the first to go, for most, I believe.