Praxi5 Advisory Group Ltd. January 2019 Praxi5 Advisory Group Ltd. January 2019 Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................ 1 Acronyms ........................................................................................................................ 2 Foreword ........................................................................................................................ 5 Executive Summary ....................................................................................................... 6 SECTION 1: BACKGROUND ......................................................................................... 9 1. Tourism in Belize .................................................................................................. 10 1.1 The Belize Tourism Product ............................................................................. 10 1.2 The Macro-environmental profile of Belize Tourism ................................... 12 1.3 Institutional & Regulatory Framework ......................................................... 19 1.4 Institutional Framework of Tourism in Orange Walk .................................. 22 2. The Planning Context ........................................................................................... 23 2.1 Key Elements of the External Environment Scan ........................................ 23 3. The Orange Walk District Tourism Market ......................................................... 32 3.1 Orange Walk Tourism Trends ....................................................................... 32 3.2 Orange Walk Tour Operators ........................................................................ 35 3.3 Orange Walk Tour Guides ............................................................................. 36 3.4 Main Competitors Needs of Target Markets ................................................ 38 3.5 Profile of the Orange Walk Tourism Product ............................................... 42 3.6 Orange Walk Tourism Assets ........................................................................ 43 3.7 Priority Issues for Tourism Product Development ...................................... 44 3.8 Bottlenecks Hindering Competitiveness ...................................................... 46 3.9 Strengths and Opportunities ......................................................................... 47 SECTION 2: THE TDDP ............................................................................................. 49 4. Vision for Orange Walk Tourism Industry .......................................................... 50 4.1 Vision Statement .......................................................................................... 50 4.2 Purpose Statements (Goals) ......................................................................... 50 5. Objectives and Strategic Actions .......................................................................... 51 6. Tourism Investment Project Ideas ...................................................................... 66 6.1 Identification of Priority Investments ......................................................... 66 6.2 Project Funding Mechanisms ........................................................................ 71 6.3 Product Clusters, Tour Itineraries & Experiences ........................................ 72 7. Management Arrangements ................................................................................. 74 8. Coordination and Monitoring .............................................................................. 76 9. Strategies and Monitoring Indicators for Success ............................................... 78 10. Implementation Schedule ................................................................................ 80 SECTION 3: APPENDICES ......................................................................................... 84 Appendix 1 – The TDDP Planning Process ............................................................. 85 Appendix 2 – Orange Walk Tourism Assets ........................................................... 88 Appendix 3 – Asset Readiness Rating Criteria ....................................................... 99 Appendix 4 – Meeting Participants ....................................................................... 102 Appendix 5 – Map of Orange Walk Destination .................................................... 107 Appendix 6 – Quarterly Status Report Form ......................................................... 108 Appendix 7 – Selected References ......................................................................... 113 Boxes Box 1: Consumer Behaviour Trends ........................................................................................ 26 Box 2: Laws Related to Tourism ............................................................................................. 30 Box 3: Tourism Development (Internal Strenghts) ................................................................. 47 Box 4: Tourism Development (External Opportunities) ........................................................ 48 Box 5: Minimum Criteria for Tourism Assets ......................................................................... 99 Box 6: Minimum Criteria for Tourism Assets ......................................................................... 99 Tables Table 1: Belize GDP Growth (In Millions Of Dollars) ....................................................... 13 Table 2: Total Number Of Overnight Arrivals For Belize (BTB) ....................................... 17 Table 3 : Total Tourism Expenditures In Belize (In Bz$M) (BTB) ................................... 18 Table 4 : Total Tourism Expenditures In Belize (In Bz$M) (BTB) ................................... 32 Table 5: Total Number Of Rooms In Belize And Orange Walk (BTB) .............................. 32 Table 6: Belize And Orange Walk Hotel Occupancy Rates (BTB ...................................... 33 Table 7: Belize And Orange Walk Hotel Occupancy Rates (BTB) ..................................... 34 Table 8: Institutional Tourism Training In Belize 2018 ................................................... 34 Table 9: CPM Critical Success Factors .............................................................................. 39 Table 10: CPM Critical Success Factors Competitive ........................................................ 41 Table 11: Orange Walk Tourism Assets Assessment ........................................................ 44 Table 12: Bottlenecks Hindering Orange Walk’s Competitiveness .................................. 46 Table 13: Orange Walk Priority Investment Proposals .................................................... 66 Table 14: Financial Institutions ......................................................................................... 71 Table 15: Orange Walk Priority Product Clusters ............................................................. 72 Table 16: Stakeholder Sub-Sectors ................................................................................... 86 Figures Figure 1: The Tourism Phenomenon – Components of Tourism .................................... 11 Figure 2: Direct Contribution of Travel and Tourism ....................................................... 14 Figure 3: Tourism Contribution to Belize’s GDP .............................................................. 14 Figure 4: The Contribution of Tourism to an Economy .................................................... 15 Figure 5: Total Contribution of Tourism to Belize’s GDP ................................................. 16 Figure 6: Tourism Expenditures as a Percentage of Total Exports .................................. 18 Figure 7: Total Contribution of Tourism to Belize’s GDP ................................................. 19 Figure 8: Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation ............................................................. 21 Figure 9: Registered Tour Guides ...................................................................................... 36 Figure 10: Tour Guide Skill Set .......................................................................................... 37 Figure 11: Orange Walk Problem Tree ............................................................................... 45 Figure 12: Traveler Rating ................................................................................................. 55 The Consulting Team wishes to thank all the stakeholders who contributed information and shared their expertise during the literature review and information gathering stage of this assignment. Special appreciation goes to those key Orange Walk tourism stakeholders that participated in the initial meeting, focus groups, and planning sessions. Special mention goes to Cindy Rivero from the Banquitas House of Culture and her staff who were accommodating and gracious in the use of their facility for stakeholder meeting sessions. Finally, the Consulting Team extends its appreciation to the Belize Tourism Board’s Cruise and Destination Planning Department team headed by Noriko Gamero. She along with Yure Roberts, Fernanda Tosta, and Danielle August provided support and guidance throughout. In particular, the team actively participated in the planning sessions and other data gathering exercises while lending their expertise to the process. This contributed to the success of the plan. ADS Average Daily Spending ARR