TEATT shifts more tourism funding to Expedia

GREAT BAY--The Ministry of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication, TEATT, is directing more of St. Maarten’s tourism promotion budget toward online travel agency campaigns after previous Expedia marketing generated more than US $38 million in tracked booking value from an investment of approximately US $168,000 to US $170,000.

Minister of TEATT Grisha Heyliger-Marten provided the figures to Parliament in response to questions about a 44 percent reduction in the cooperative airline campaign budget and a 210 percent increase in funding for online travel agency, OTA, marketing.

According to the Minister, the Expedia campaign produced approximately US $224 in tracked booking value for every US $1 invested. The ability to measure exposure, clicks, bookings, room nights and return on advertising spending was cited as a major reason for maintaining and increasing investment in OTA campaigns.

The St. Maarten Tourism Bureau, STB, will continue working with Expedia in 2026, with government noting that private-sector tourism businesses are also investing in campaigns on the platform.

The Ministry said simultaneous campaigns can reinforce each other, with STB promoting St. Maarten as a destination while hotels and other private-sector partners promote bookable accommodations and services.

This approach is intended to keep St. Maarten visible during important booking periods, generate demand during slower travel periods and help support both existing and newly introduced airline routes.

The Minister stressed that the reduction in the cooperative airline campaign allocation should not be interpreted as government moving away from airlift development.

Despite the 44 percent reduction, St. Maarten recently secured Southwest Airlines through cooperation involving French Saint Martin, Dutch St. Maarten, Princess Juliana International Airport and the airline industry.

Southwest currently provides service from Orlando and Baltimore/Washington, while its wider domestic network also provides St. Maarten with access to passengers connecting from other cities throughout the United States.

The Ministry said securing Southwest demonstrated that attracting airlines does not depend solely on direct financial incentives. Destination demand, airport cooperation, airline confidence, joint destination efforts and strategic promotion also influence route-development decisions.

Once Southwest's routes were confirmed, STB used digital marketing, destination promotion and other visibility campaigns to create awareness and stimulate demand for the flights.

According to the Ministry, the Orlando and Baltimore/Washington services have recorded encouraging load factors.

STB has also used Hopper as part of its digital and OTA strategy.

The Ministry explained that Hopper provides access to mobile-first and price-conscious travelers during the travel-planning and booking process, while Expedia provides broad destination exposure and direct booking opportunities through one of the major international travel platforms.

For 2026, greater emphasis will remain on Expedia because of its measurable performance and the opportunity to combine government promotion with campaigns being conducted by private tourism businesses.

The Ministry considers measurable digital activity particularly important because campaign performance can be tracked and evaluated more directly than some traditional forms of tourism promotion.

Supporting Southwest’s Orlando and Baltimore/Washington services will be among STB’s main route-development objectives for 2026.

The Tourism Bureau intends to use targeted digital promotion, trade engagement and cooperative marketing to maintain strong passenger loads and support continued growth of the routes.

Government also intends to capitalize on Southwest’s wider domestic network to attract travelers from U.S. cities beyond the two gateways currently providing direct St. Maarten service.

Existing airline partners serving St. Maarten from the United States, Canada, Europe and the Caribbean will continue receiving targeted support aimed at protecting current airlift and generating additional demand during both peak and slower travel periods.

At the same time, government will continue pursuing new or expanded service from additional U.S. gateways as well as Canada, Latin America, Europe and the Caribbean.

The feasibility of those routes will depend on factors including passenger demand, available airline capacity, route profitability and St. Maarten’s readiness to support the service.

The Minister said digital campaigns, OTA promotions, destination marketing and private-sector cooperation are increasingly being treated as part of St. Maarten’s airlift strategy rather than separate tourism activities.

Airlines considering a destination pay close attention to booking demand and passenger loads. Government therefore views marketing that converts traveler interest into actual bookings as a tool for convincing airlines to maintain or expand routes.

The 2026 approach consequently combines traditional airline cooperation with airport partnerships, cross-border collaboration, OTA marketing, digital promotion and private-sector participation.

According to Heyliger-Marten, the reduction in direct cooperative airline funding is being balanced by greater investment in campaigns capable of generating measurable bookings and supporting airline load factors.

The Ministry pointed to the successful introduction of Southwest Airlines and the tracked results of the Expedia campaign as evidence supporting the more integrated tourism marketing and airlift-development strategy being pursued for 2026.

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