Fearing that a change is afoot in American Airline’s policy of waiving the checked bag fee for one box of liquor, Gov. John deJongh Jr. wrote to an airline official urging that the free checked box continue to be allowed.
“There have been lots of rumblings by visitors who understand the waiver may be removed,” Tourism Commissioner Beverly Nicholson Doty said Wednesday.
Doty said liquor purchased at the airport store located past the passenger inspection area can be carried onboard, but people who buy it elsewhere have to check the box because it contains more than the three ounces allowed to be carried on in a quart-sized plastic bag.
Making people pay to check their liquor box will have a big impact, Doty said. “It becomes a significant cost to the traveler.”
The governor wrote in his letter to Art Torno, American’s vice president for Latin America, the Caribbean and Miami, that adding liquor-box fees would affect a large and key segment of the territory’s commercial trade.
He said the Virgin Islands is world-renowned for duty-free shopping, with a wide selection of retail offerings, including many spirits and locally produced rum. Those retail goods attract travelers from around the world, deJongh said.
“The waiver safeguards a significant source of revenue for the Virgin Islands,” deJongh wrote.
The governor asked Torno to consider that revenues generated by the new policy must be “set against the loss of goodwill from travelers and the effect on continuing business, not to mention on our local industries and economy.”
DeJongh said he or Doty would be happy to discuss the matter further with American Airline executives.
American spokesman Martha Pantin did not return several phone calls requesting comment.
interesting dilemna, do you go for the short term gain or be a good corporate neighbor and look to the long term benefits of not pissing off your customers and an entire US territory.
you just know that those airlines have been looking at that pot of money for awhile now and they want their slice of the pie. Normally one would assume it wouldnt be worth the negative attention, one would be wrong. I cant count the number of fees and penalties and restrictions that have been dreamt up by the airlines to sqeeze more and more every year. So yes i have no doubt they will do this.
If the airlines do start to charge fees it stands to reason it will be less attractive to the traveller to lug six bottles of booze to their destination. Less liquer sales, less benefit to the VI. Dont start messing around with an already delicate economy here.
Should they persist with this baggage fee the governor should play hard ball and move to increase airport fees to airlines that charge a baggage fee for duty free liquer.
I think this is one of the rare opportunities for legislature and the governor to agree on something.
stand tough governor? Doubtful. And if he does, he will surely screw it up for the entire population and our visitors. I seem to recall the last time the government played hardball was with the (Royal Caribbean and Carnival) cruise lines, threatening them with increased passenger revenue tax. The cruise lines responded that the tax can be added but there will be few to pay, as the ships will just drop the USVI for more tourist-oriented destinations….like St. Maarten, or even San Juan. Either would be pleased to receive even more passengers and…..per head revenue. Surely, there must be a better way to make money than to ruin an entire territory’s shopping reputation. We must always consider the “schlep factor”. Why drag your booze around if there is so little savings between main street on St. Thomas and main street in say Atlanta or Chicago? Both sides need to very seriously consider the overall benefits for both territory and airline versus a small unreliable tax stream. Just be very careful what you demand.