Recommend recently joined the Grenada Tourism Authority for an exclusive evening at NYC’s Le Jardinier, where we sat down with newly appointed CEO Stacey Liburd to discuss her vision for the island’s tourism segment. The event also brought together key leaders, including Raphael Michael Brizan, Consulate General of Grenada in New York; Randall Doland, Chairman of the Grenada Tourism Authority; and Christine Noel, Director of Sales and Marketing.
The Future of Grenada’s Tourism
Recommend: What unique aspects of Grenada’s culture and natural resources do you believe offer the strongest opportunities for tourism development?
Stacey Liburd: I think our greatest asset is our people. [In fact] we’ve launched the Pure Grenada training program for those in the hospitality segment. And it’s not just for line staff; it’s also for managers and supervisors, because we recognize that even with the best offerings and accommodations, if the service does not match, we won’t attract visitors to return.
[It’s also important] to empower our people to be able to move up the ranks; we want to see more of our local population at the very top, at the managerial level, be it general manager, resort manager or head of housekeeping.
The only way we can do that is to provide the necessary tools and training for them to see their purpose within the tourism segment. It’s the main contributor to our GDP and we want to ensure that we treat it with the utmost pride..
Recommend: Last night [at the event], I noticed how passionate and proud everyone here is about the island.
Liburd: It’s really great to see. And we want to ensure that that trickles down to the service industry when we serve other folks. And it’s not just with our visitors; it’s how we serve one another. It’s to be able to extend service across the board, whether you live on the island or you’re visiting.
Recommend: How do you see Grenada’s position evolving within the competitive Caribbean tourism market?
Liburd: I think that in terms of tourism, I’m always of the view that no country should be dependent on just one industry. Additionally, I believe that our natural assets also contribute to a wide array of offerings. So be it in the wellness space, be it in romance or soft adventure.
I think the opportunity also lies within the meetings and incentive space. We’re going to roll that out in 2026 a bit more robustly. We also want to explore the luxury space, as we have some excellent luxury offerings. We have recently been accepted into the Virtuoso consortium, so we want to educate luxury travel advisors about the options available for their clients. And similarly, I think that also speaks to the private jet industry and yachting. Sustainability will always be at the fore because we have such great natural assets.
[Then there’s] farming and farm-to-table that speaks to culinary, and just being able to live off the land. I think it’s one of the greatest resources that we can provide to ourselves as people living there. Next year, the strategy is going to be very robust.
[As well,] our chairman shared that the government is partnered with Mount Sinai, so we’re going to be building out a medical facility that is going to open up opportunities for medical tourism as well.
There are tons of options. Of course, trade and investment are also options; we’re looking at tapping into the African, Asian, Latin American and European markets. We’re seeing steady growth, and we’re now in a position to invest in those markets and further develop them.
Recommend: What role do you envision for sustainable tourism practices in Grenada’s future?
Liburd: We’ve already started! And I think again, whatever development that we embark on, we have to ensure that there’s equal opportunity and equity for our people to be able to grow and benefit from that. Looking at agritourism, exportation can benefit the island and our local farmers. We mentioned farm-to-table. I love visiting properties like Spice Island Beach Resort and knowing that the food I’m having is from a local farm.
We’re also seeing many of our hotels have small farms. They grow their herbs and vegetables, and you know that you’re getting produce that is farmed on the island and not imported. So, you know it’s fresh. So there’s an opportunity within that agritourism space as well.
Recommend: The cruise industry is a significant opportunity for Grenada. What innovations are you considering to enhance the experience for cruise visitors while benefiting local communities?
Liburd: I think the ultimate goal is to be able to convert what we call day trippers, if you will, because to them, Grenada is just a port of call and they’re just disembarking for the day. And we want to ensure that our product is at a level where a visitor will say, “Oh my God, I don’t think we had enough time to be able to experience the destination fully. I want to come with my family, my spouse, or my friends to be able to experience it.” So, we’re looking at that conversion.
We’re looking at the product, specifically its service and accessibility, ensuring that the basic things are in place so that when someone visits one of our national parks or one of our waterfalls, the space is pristine and they have the facilities to be able to either patronize some of our local vendors, have bathroom facilities that they can go to or food and beverage outlets if they want to sit and enjoy a little bit.
So we’re looking at all of those things. I know that the government has a great plan regarding road networks to ensure safety and seamless transportation. We are also working with our ground transportation service providers to ensure they have the requisite fleet to meet demand when people disembark and want to enjoy the island.
So, it is looking at the product to ensure that everything is in place to meet the demand, but the ultimate goal is to convert. At the very least, if we can convert at least 35 percent of those crews and guests into overnight guests, I think that would work very well for the destination.
Recommend: Travel advisors are crucial partners. What new initiatives are you planning to equip them better to sell Grenada?
Liburd: Everything starts with education. If you have all the correct information, you feel confident selling the destination. So, whether it’s conducting webinars, coming in-market and doing sales missions, I know that travel advisors like that face-to-face interaction. So, much like the trade initiatives, we also do a lot of sales missions in the market.
Another thing we find very effective is that many advisors want to experience the destination they’re selling, because they can sell it from a different lens. We’re working with our properties to host travel advisors on the island. And, of course, we have the Grenada Travel Expert program. That is a platform for agents to learn about the destination, as well as discover new products and services available in real-time, and to be recognized as a Grenada Travel Expert. We’ll continue to tweak that to make it a little bit easier to access the information.
I know that AI is playing a huge role now in how people access information. We’re going to look at putting a chatbot on the website, so that you’re getting responses in real-time whenever you need them, no matter where you are in the world.
These are the ways in which we are working to ensure that our travel advisors have the right information at their fingertips to sell the destination effectively. The message is that the Grenada Tourism Authority is an extension of their business.
We want to serve as a resource, whatever it is they need. They need to reach a service provider? They’re having difficulty? No problem. We got you. You have a client on the hook, and you would like a mock itinerary around culinary, around adventure, around wellness, around sustainability…
I had someone say they have a group coming in in October, and they want to be able to give back. They’re going to reach out to us to identify whether it’s a school or educational materials that they can give back to, and also assist them in getting it here on the island.
Those are some of the things we want to work hand in hand with our travel advisors on. We want them to see us as a true partner. They’re not in this alone. And we recognize how valuable they are, how much of a role they play in their clients deciding on where they go next. We want to keep Grenada front of mind.
Recommend: Thank you!
With reporting from Andrea Sper and Lydia Gregory. Interview lightly edited for length and clarity.
For more information, visit puregrenada.com.
