It’s the kind of foreign invasion tourism officials welcome: hundreds of visiting boats ready to spend their dollars in the Virgin Islands.
Informally known as the “Puerto Rican navy,” hundreds of people sailed over from Puerto Rico last weekend to enjoy their Easter holiday in the Virgin Islands. The annual tradition is becoming a welcome end-of-season boost for hospitality businesses.
“It’s one of the biggest weeks of the year, just because the boats are so large. They tend to come with a full boat. Half of the guests take rooms and half stay on the boat,” said Martin Smith, managing director of Scrub Island Resort.
Mr. Smith estimated that of the 44 boats that “jam-packed” the resort’s marina this weekend, 34 brought Puerto Ricans who were visiting the VI with their families. About half of the resort’s 52 rooms were rented out, he said.
Hundreds of boats
Some of the boats are attracted to the territory because of the sportfishing, but others come just to spend time with their families, said Javier Lopez Matos, a Puerto Rican boater who visited this weekend.
“I believe it’s because it is the closest chain of islands that Puerto Ricans consider true paradise. We call it the playground of the Puerto Rican navy. You have so many options of islands,” he said.
Mr. Matos estimated that 360 boats from Puerto Rico visited this weekend, an increase over previous years that he attributed to a recovering economy.
“They have stopped being cautious because the news and the media pretty much has stopped the angle of making people afraid of economy,” he said. “You have pretty much seen that people are getting their jobs back. The economy is leveling out.”
See full story in the April 28, 2011 issue.