{"id":184991,"date":"2023-09-12T23:03:35","date_gmt":"2023-09-13T03:03:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?p=184991"},"modified":"2023-09-12T23:03:35","modified_gmt":"2023-09-13T03:03:35","slug":"antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/","title":{"rendered":"Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a><\/div>
\"\"<\/a><\/div>

Antigua and Barbuda’s Tourism Minister, Honourable Charles Fernandez, opposes subsidizing airlines for regular flights to the country.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

He prefers investing in destination promotion to boost demand, unlike some competing Caribbean destinations that offer subsidies to airlines.<\/p>\n

Fernandez believes that striking a balance is crucial but is against putting money into flights without considering demand, citing an example where an island paid $1 million annually for a flight that saw few passengers and was eventually discontinued.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>
\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

He firmly believes that promoting the destination itself will naturally drive demand, as evidenced by increased flights in July, despite concerns about high flight costs.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

Fernandez advocates cost reduction through collaborative efforts with airlines, like joint promotions and waiving landing and airport fees for the first six months.<\/p>\n

However, he acknowledges the competitive landscape among Caribbean islands in attracting airline flights and calls for a more cooperative approach among Caribbean nations instead of one-upmanship.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n
\"\"<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Antigua and Barbuda’s Tourism Minister, Honourable Charles Fernandez, opposes subsidizing airlines for regular flights to the country. He prefers investing in destination promotion to boost demand, unlike some competing Caribbean destinations that offer subsidies to airlines. Fernandez believes that striking a balance is crucial but is against putting money into flights without considering demand, citing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4371,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-184991","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nAntigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion - Antigua News Room<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Antigua and Barbuda’s Tourism Minister, Honourable Charles Fernandez, opposes subsidizing airlines for regular flights to the country. He prefers investing in destination promotion to boost demand, unlike some competing Caribbean destinations that offer subsidies to airlines. Fernandez believes that striking a balance is crucial but is against putting money into flights without considering demand, citing […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Antigua News Room\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-09-13T03:03:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/American-airlines-e1487738125347.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"678\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Editor\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@AntiguaNewsRoom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@AntiguaNewsRoom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Editor\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Editor\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5\"},\"headline\":\"Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-09-13T03:03:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-09-13T03:03:35+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/\"},\"wordCount\":160,\"commentCount\":2,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1024\/h:678\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/American-airlines-e1487738125347.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/\",\"name\":\"Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion - Antigua News Room\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1024\/h:678\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/American-airlines-e1487738125347.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-09-13T03:03:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-09-13T03:03:35+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1024\/h:678\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/American-airlines-e1487738125347.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1024\/h:678\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/American-airlines-e1487738125347.jpg\",\"width\":\"1024\",\"height\":\"678\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\",\"name\":\"Antigua News Room\",\"description\":\"News As It Happens\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Antigua Newsroom\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg\",\"width\":1260,\"height\":1260,\"caption\":\"Antigua Newsroom\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/AntiguaNewsRoom\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/antiguanewsroom\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5\",\"name\":\"Editor\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96\",\"caption\":\"Editor\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/author\/editor\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion - Antigua News Room","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion","og_description":"Antigua and Barbuda’s Tourism Minister, Honourable Charles Fernandez, opposes subsidizing airlines for regular flights to the country. He prefers investing in destination promotion to boost demand, unlike some competing Caribbean destinations that offer subsidies to airlines. Fernandez believes that striking a balance is crucial but is against putting money into flights without considering demand, citing […]","og_url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/","og_site_name":"Antigua News Room","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom","article_published_time":"2023-09-13T03:03:35+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":678,"url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/American-airlines-e1487738125347.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Editor","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@AntiguaNewsRoom","twitter_site":"@AntiguaNewsRoom","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Editor","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/"},"author":{"name":"Editor","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5"},"headline":"Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion","datePublished":"2023-09-13T03:03:35+00:00","dateModified":"2023-09-13T03:03:35+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/"},"wordCount":160,"commentCount":2,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1024\/h:678\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/American-airlines-e1487738125347.jpg","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/","name":"Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion - Antigua News Room","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1024\/h:678\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/American-airlines-e1487738125347.jpg","datePublished":"2023-09-13T03:03:35+00:00","dateModified":"2023-09-13T03:03:35+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1024\/h:678\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/American-airlines-e1487738125347.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1024\/h:678\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/American-airlines-e1487738125347.jpg","width":"1024","height":"678"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/antigua-and-barbuda-tourism-minister-opposes-airline-subsidies-favors-destination-promotion\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Opposes Airline Subsidies, Favors Destination Promotion"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/","name":"Antigua News Room","description":"News As It Happens","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization","name":"Antigua Newsroom","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg","width":1260,"height":1260,"caption":"Antigua Newsroom"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom","https:\/\/x.com\/AntiguaNewsRoom","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/antiguanewsroom\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5","name":"Editor","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96","caption":"Editor"},"url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/author\/editor\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184991","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=184991"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184991\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/media\/4371"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=184991"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=184991"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=184991"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}