Based on previous records and some new milestones set for this year, the Saint Lucia Tourist Board (SLTB) has rated the 20th anniversary hosting of the Annual Jazz Festival very highly.

Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation Senator Allen Chastanet ticked off as significant, the increasing strides towards an almost 100% local coordination of the festival. “The identification of Saint Lucia Tourist Boardas the Presenting Sponsor has gained greater meaning in recent years; more so this year. In 2011 there has been quite a forward leap in terms of transitioning of the ownership of Saint Lucia Jazz to local management.”

Translated in real terms, Senator Chastanet said this speaks to the documented expertise and experience of not just the SLTB as festival organizers but also to the Destination, as it relates to the logistics and delivery of world class events. “We are able to go it alone in attracting and negotiating with some of the world’s best talent, while maintaining our reputation as the Caribbean trendsetter for a diverse tourism product that includes considerably more than the traditional staple of sun, sea and sand. We are producers of premiere entertainment products with mass international appeal. That is a fact.”

Photo by Scruffy ImageTaj Weekes – St. Lucia Jazz Festival 2011

Tourism Director Louis Lewis highlights the 2011 achievements on multiple fronts. He said that with the SLTB’s constant innovations around the festival experience, Saint Lucia Jazz continues to retain the trust and commitment of its core sponsors.

“We launched the Pigeon Island Gold Pass; and in its trial stage it has proved the assumptions we made that there are sub-groups of patrons who would better appreciate the already superb venue, with some elite add-ons. With the perfect conditions we had over the three Pigeon Island days, the Gold Pass experience was simply idyllic.” The Pigeon Island Gold Pass was a variation on the same theme of the Premium Package at Gaiety, launched last year. The products offer a red-carpet grade bundle of tickets, valet service, advantage seating and VIP reception to patrons. Director Lewis says the SLTB is proud at the unprecedented number of national artistes who were contracted this year, with every main-stage venue featuring the islands rising and risen stars.

According to the Tourism Director, the benefits are not always strictly about cash profits in these instances. “The types of connections that can and are often made i.e. artiste to artiste, press to artiste, local press to non-local press is very real. Of particular note is the opportunity some of our nationals got to be interviewed live on Canadian radio, we count as an achievement.”

The Saint Lucia Tourist Board cites the commitment of sponsors and volunteers and the perseverance and ownership of organizers of the Jazz fringe events as critical dynamics in the success of the festival.