The St. Vincent and the Grenadines delegation to the Grand Pavois boat show in La Rochelle, France are discovery strong interest in the destination from the thousands of vistors to the event.

"Many of the people visiting the booth have heard of or have already sailed the Grenadines," one of the Vincentian delegates said after a very busy first day on Wednesday, September 7th. "A lot of them know the destination through neighbouring islands like Martinique and St. Lucia," he added.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines is part of a joint OECS mission at this year's Grand Pavois boat show, one ot the top three in the world. The OECS Secretariat has coordinated the regional participation in the event, as part of efforts to further promote the OECS tourism industry, and the yachting sector in particular. More than 100,000 people from across Europe attend the event annually, many of them yachtsmen seeking new destinations, or marine operators looking for partnerships or investment opportunities.

The four member Vincentian delegation has been informing visitors about the new airline connection between Fort de France, Martinique (a French overseas department) and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

The members of the delegation are Mr. John West of the marine private sector, Tanya Fraser a tourism officer based in London, Erica Mc Intosh a manufacturer and charter compâny operator, and Kurth Cordice of the SVG Recreational Marine Association (RMA).

The Grand Pavois boat show runs from September 7th to 12th.