New Marketing Efforts Cement Sports as Key to Tourism Recovery

The Bermuda Tourism Authority (BTA) will leverage new marketing tools to further propel sports groups and events in the island’s tourism recovery.  A new safety video targeting sports organizers, a robust sailing race calendar and a plan to develop November as golf month, along with other tactics, are part of a strategic plan to leverage Bermuda’s pandemic safety record and healthy outdoor spaces to win more sports business.

In last year’s arrival numbers, sports emerged as a silver lining for the tourism economy, with 784 air visitors selecting sports as the primary reason for their visit in October. That figure represents a 30% increase over October 2019 – a remarkable achievement considering the pandemic slump.

The recent success with sports tourism will be used as a template for further growth, starting this month with revised sailing content on the web and a video highlighting Bermuda’s expertise at maintaining sports tourism activity while keeping its community safe.

“Sports is not a new focus area for the BTA. It has been a crucial part of the National Tourism Plan since 2018,” said Glenn Jones, BTA Interim CEO. “However, the focus sports in the plan – golf, tennis, sailing and endurance sports – have proven particularly purpose-built for this moment because they are non-contact sports where physical distancing of athletes and spectators is possible.” 

The 2021 sports tourism calendar further reflects this reality (all subject to change).

Event	Category	Date
Bermuda Grand Prix	Sailing	April 24 - 25
Annapolis Bermuda Race	Sailing	June
Marion Bermuda Race	Sailing	June 18 - 26
Edward Cross Comet Long Distance Race	Sailing	June 21
Bermuda Triple Crown	Fishing	July 3 – 27
Bermuda Racquet Weekend	Tennis	July 24 – 25
Cup Match Classic	Cricket	July 29 – 30
Carifta Games	Track & Field	August 13 – 15
International One Design Worlds	Sailing	September 12 – 17
Bermuda Gold Cup	Sailing	September 27 – October 2
Courts & Shorts	Tennis	October 2 – 3
World Triathlon Sprint & Relay Championship	Endurance	October 15 – 17
International 505s World Championship	Sailing	October 26 – November 5
Keelboat Nationals	Sailing	October 23 – 24
PGA TOUR Bermuda Championship	Golf	October 25 – 31
Bermuda Black Golf Summit & Championship	Golf	November 2 – 7
World Rugby Classic	Rugby	November 7 - 13
Junior Bermuda Championship (AJGA)	Golf	December 9 – 12
Round the World Clipper Race	Sailing	December 20 – 30

Visiting sports groups must seek the approval of local officials at the Ministries of National Security and Health before they can proceed. It can be an arduous process in a fluid environment. To make the process of seeking approval more seamless, the minister responsible for tourism, Premier David Burt has convened a task force made up of the relevant government ministries and the BTA. The objective is to

create a clearer process for sports groups and enable the BTA to convert more sports leads into on-the-ground, revenue-generating business for Bermuda.

In exit surveys, 98 percent of travellers said they felt "safe" or "very safe" from COVID-19 while in Bermuda between July and December 2020. 

BTA Director of Sports Business Development Hazel Clark said: “Bermuda’s heath safety record is very attractive to sports groups looking to compete and train on the island, but if the process to get here isn’t easy to understand with clear decision-making timelines, team leaders give up.”

The task force aims to provide guidance for Bermuda residents who want to play alongside visiting athletes. However, in some cases, a visiting sports group will be required to confine themselves to a bubble sealed off from the community, as was the case for Bermuda Championship’s professional golfers and will be the case for the professional sailors of Bermuda Grand Prix presented by Hamilton Princess.  As sporting events take hold, the BTA can nurture additional tourism experiences around them like April’s Catamaran & Yacht Week and November’s golf month and Bermuda Black Golf Summit & Championship.

About Bermuda Tourism Authority (BTA)

The Bermuda Tourism Authority (BTA) is an award-winning, accredited destination marketing organisation that promotes Bermuda internationally and works to empower our tourism industry stakeholders. Explore Bermuda’s National Tourism Plan at BermudaNTP.com.