Irion questions government support for official tourism marketing

MP Ardwell Irion questioned whether Government is providing the St. Maarten Tourism Bureau with enough resources for digital marketing during Parliament’s continued handling of the draft 2027 national budget on Tuesday 29 September.

Irion said private businesses, entertainers and independent social media personalities are helping promote St. Maarten to potential visitors. He said he had spoken with businesses and verified that the slower tourism period had been stronger than might normally be expected, but said that should not automatically be credited to Government marketing.

Irion said the Tourism Bureau’s staff are doing the best they can with the resources available. He asked Government how much funding and other support the bureau needs to improve its reach on platforms including Instagram, TikTok and Facebook.

He also asked what tourism and economic indicators Government will use to measure the success of its 2027 approach, and how it measures the performance of official tourism pages. Irion said Government should identify its digital-marketing investment and the additional support planned for the Tourism Bureau in 2027.