Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and Aviation

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The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, Investment and Aviation is a government agency of The Bahamas. [1] Its head office is at the Bolam House in Nassau. The agency has other offices in New Providence. [2]

Contents

History of Tourism in The Bahamas

The Bahamian tourism industry began during the 19th century when the government wanted to build a hotel and steamship service. [3] In 1851, any person or company who provided a steamship service between Nassau and New York was paid £3,000 annually for 5 years. [4] In 1961, the Royal Victoria Hotel was built with the goal of appealing to winter visitors. [4] However, the American Civil War caused it to become a home to blockade-runners. [4] The Hotel Colonial opened in Nassau in 1900 and in 1913 the Manufacturers and Hotel Encouragement Act was created to bring in more materials for building hotels without duties. [4] The Lucerne Hotel also opened the same year.

In 1914, the Development Board was created with an office in Nassau and members were responsible for promoting tourism through advertisements, information services and public relations with a budget of £3,000 annually. [4] In 1915-1916, World War I caused steamships to cancel services to the Bahamas leaving hotels with no guests and subsequently leading to closure of the Royal Victoria Hotel and the Hotel Colonial. [4]

In 1919, the colony was able to find stability again with the passing of the Volstead Act in the United States. [4] Many Bahamians were able to make money importing and exporting alcohol to US ports. [4] The Royal Victoria Hotel was able to reopen because of bootleggers and wealthy American visitors. [4]

Areas of Responsibility

The areas that the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, Investments and Aviation is responsible for include:

References

  1. ↑ "Agencies." Government of the Bahamas. Retrieved on 16 February 2012. "George St, Bolam House"
  2. ↑ "Contacts." Bahamas Ministry of Tourism. Retrieved on 16 February 2012. "Ministry of Tourism’s Offices – New Providence Bolam House, George & King Streets (Headquarters)"
  3. ↑ "Holidays to the Bahamas with Bon Voyage::". www.bon-voyage.co.uk. Retrieved 2025-08-21.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Wayback Machine" (PDF). digitalcollections.wesleyan.edu. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-06-04. Retrieved 2025-08-28.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Tourism, Investments and Aviation, Ministry of". www.bahamas.gov.bs. Retrieved 2025-08-21.



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