Word: caribbean
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...more efficiently, more safely and more profitably than the Americans did. Too bad, most Panamanians say, that their government is still best known for the kind of corruption and waste that has marred the small Central American country's reputation ever since pirates haunted the Caribbean. If they could just run the nation the way they run the canal, Panamanians believe, they could become a world-class maritime commercial and financial center - the Hong Kong of the Americas. Or maybe give Miami a run as the unofficial capital of Latin America...
...such funds may not go far in an economy already in recession from the global slowdown. Businesses from the flu-ridden streets of the capital to the golden beaches that tourists fled in droves are all complaining they have been hammered by the epidemic and its consequences. In the Caribbean paradise of Cancun, six major resorts were to take their own holiday because they had been emptied of guests, said Rodrigo de la Pena, president of the Cancun Hotel Association. "This is the best action they can take to avoid having to lay off staff," de la Pena said. Pena...
Bargain Time The battle for the shrinking pool of tourists, naturally, is good news for anyone still vacationing. To shore up the Southeast Asian market, Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam have cut visa fees and worked with airlines, hotels and tourist sites to slash prices. Caribbean operators say deep price cuts have been essential to keep the region in people's minds during the turmoil. Some Caribbean resorts have cut prices in half, while Elite Island Resorts - the second-largest independent hospitality group in the region - will even accept guests' depressed stocks as payment; the firm values stocks at their...
...most visited country, saw the number of international visitors drop by more than 7%, and its foreign-tourism revenue shrink by more than 15%. In Spain, year-on-year arrivals dropped by 16% in February - the country's sharpest decline in years. And in the tropical islands of the Caribbean and South Pacific, it's a case of surf, sand and empty beach chairs. In February, French Polynesia reported a 30% drop in year-on-year arrivals - tourist numbers are now at levels last seen in 1996 - while the number of tourists cruising between the islands of Bermuda, Antigua...
...seeing a mix of cancellations and re-bookings," says Brian Hoyt, a spokesperson for the travel booking and comparison site Orbitz, which has also waived its rebooking fees for trips to Mexico through mid-May. "We're suggesting alternatives like Las Vegas and the Caribbean, which have similar climates...