Tobago will see a substantial rise in the number of visitors to the island this year via Condor Airlines.

The projection was made by representatives of Condor Airlines who met with Deputy Chief Secretary and Secretary of Tourism and Transportation in the Tobago House of Assembly, Assemblyman Tracy Davison-Celestine, and a team of officials at the Division on Tuesday 18th August, 2015 to discuss airlift opportunities and challenges between the two organizations.

Wilken Bellman, Head of Network Development Long Haul at Thomas Cook, stated that projections for the 2015-2016 period looked substantially better than previous periods with higher load factors and greater yields on the flights as the bookings for both winter and summer have increased.

He added that this signaled a decrease in financial risks for both parties.

The Condor representatives further expressed enthusiasm in renewing the contract for the 2017-2018 period which would ensure the continuation of the weekly service to the island from Frankfurt, Germany.

Secretary Davidson-Celestine, in welcoming the good news, said that this was evidence that the Division of Tourism and Transportation and the Tobago House of Assembly were moving along the correct path towards improving the island’s tourism arrivals.

The meeting also discussed a number of possibilities including a service by Condor from Scandanavia to Tobago, a direct flight from Manchester to Tobago and the feasibility of introducing a second winter-only service from Frankfurt, Germany to Tobago. The airline’s representatives promised to work closely with tour operators to ascertain the practicality of these extra services.

Additionally, Secretary Davidson-Celestine suggested that the Chinese market be seriously considered since there was a growing number of traffic from that area.

“At the end of the day what we want is for persons to maximize the flights and then eventually stay at the properties in Tobago.” She said.