News of the ‘no-go’ beaches is making some holidaymakers think of cancelling their trip. (Graphic by James Linane)
THE sewage crisis is hitting tourism.
Online reports of the island’s no-go beaches have robbed seaside hotels of their major selling point and have led some holidaymakers to consider staying away.
‘Tourists are already very concerned and I’ve had calls from the UK after they have read the story on the internet,’ said Mark Frost, who owns L’Eree Bay Hotel.
‘People are thinking of cancelling their holidays. It’s a great deal of concern. There’s not a lot I can say to change their minds as it is there in black and white.’
Mr Frost said the incident could not have come at a worse time – there are 20 children among his 80 guests and they want to play on the beach.
‘It’s our busiest time and people are specifically coming for the beach-side location. We’ve not been notified by anyone of what will happen or which beaches are safe.’
Chris Vermeulen, who with his brother runs La Grande Mare Hotel at Vazon, agreed. ‘It’s certainly not helping our trade – a lot of our guests are walking around a bit glum. They want to get on the beach and do some surfing. It has put a dampener on the place.
‘It’s not the sort of thing we needed at this time.
‘We do understand that things can happen sometimes which are out of our control, but we should be able to get it sorted quickly so people can enjoy their holiday.’
On Monday, raw sewage was pumped out at Cobo, a beach popular with locals and tourists. Dave Nussbaumer, who owns the Cobo Bay Hotel, said that it was marketed as seaside accommodation but that his guests were being told not to take advantage of that.
‘It couldn’t be worse. That’s the whole market here, with the beach. While the sewage is there, it is hard to market the hotel.
‘We’ve had no cancellations so far, but we spent an hour the other day advising people where to go. People coming here are very unhappy to not be able to have a swim.’
Article posted on 7th August, 2008 - 2.29pm
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