Above: Apple Leisure Group CEO Alex Zozaya on Fox Business

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Could Haiti be the next Bali?

Speaking on Fox Business Network last week, Apple Leisure Group CEO Alex Zozaya said Haiti could be a new growth area for Caribbean tourism.

“When they asked me about what is the next opportunity, the next place I see that is really going to explode in terms of a great destination, closer to home for the American market, I think Haiti provides a great opportunity,” he said. “It is a beautiful place, has an excellent location. We are trying to develop a destination within the destination, kind of like with Bali, people go Bali not to Indonesia.”

Zozaya said his company was “putting a master plan together” for new ideas in Haiti and “inviting several investors.”

“We are the asset-light type of business where we have the management and the branding of the hotels,” he said. “We are trying to bring other players to have a multi-brand destination, building its own airport and golf course, etcetera to develop this destination which is safe, great value for money and a beautiful place.”

Haiti has been on a major push in the last two years to reposition itself as a tourism destination in the Caribbean region, with several new hotels either already completed or in development.