GRENADA TOURISM UPDATE St. George’s, Grenada, November 17, 2004 - - "It has been two months since the passing of Hurricane Ivan and there is meaningful progress being made," said William Joseph, Director of Tourism for the Grenada Board of Tourism. "Every day significant advancements are made in our tourism product to return it to its peak status." The following update reflects all confirmed information the Grenada Board of Tourism has received regarding infrastructure, airlines, seaports, resort regions and hotel status: Overall Assessment: The Grenada Government announced that 97% of the Grenada population now has access to clean, drinkable flowing water. Electricity and telephone services have been restored to the parish of St. George, including the capital city, Grand Anse and Point Salines areas, and the parish of St. Andrew and surrounding areas. Recent projections say that the entire country should have full access to electricity by the end of February 2005. All the major roads in Grenada have been cleared of debris and are open to traffic. Most banks, shops, marinas and gas stations are also now open. So too are many schools. Security is firmly in place, as the dusk to dawn curfew that was in effect for St. George and St. Andrew parishes has been relaxed to 12:00 p.m [midnight] to 5:00 a.m. The face of Grenada’s overall landscape is very encouraging. The lush, green foliage that the island is known for has returned. Airport/Airlines: Effective the first of this month, Point Salines International Airport is now open for daily operations to both regional and international flights between the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., until further notice. BWIA is offering flights from New York and Miami via its Trinidad hub while Air Jamaica has resumed all flights via its Montego Bay hub and its Tuesday, Friday and Sunday non-stop service from JFK/New York. American Eagle is operating daily flights from San Juan that depart at 6:20 p.m., as of December 2nd and arrive in Grenada at 8:50 p.m. The daily return flight, from Grenada to San Juan, departs at 8:30 a.m. and arrives in San Juan at 11:02 a.m. Both LIAT and Caribbean Star are operating daily scheduled flights to Grenada. Attractions: Several of Grenada’s popular attractions such as Dougaldston Spice Estate, Gouyave Nutmeg Processing Station, Levera Beach & National Park, LaSagesse Nature Center and River Antoine Rum Distillery are open for business. Carriacou: Grenada’s sister island sustained minimal damage and is in full operation and accepting tourists. All resorts, restaurants, attractions and tour operators are open for business. Carriacou is reachable with St Vincent Grenada Air (SVG), via Barbados, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada. Carriacou is also reachable via The Osprey, a motorized catamaran that departs twice a day from Grenada. Cruise Sector: The port is now operational and the Norwegian Spirit visited Grenada on November 9th. It was the first major cruise ship to visit Grenada in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan. This was followed by the arrival of the C Columbus on Wednesday November 10th. These visits effectively ushered in the winter season, which had a belated start due to the impact of Hurricane Ivan. Dive Sector: Because Hurricane Ivan did not create a big surge or high seas, Grenada's reefs and wrecks were undisturbed by the storm. Aquanauts Grenada dive shop is in full operation at their True Blue Bay Resort location. The company’s dive shops at both Spice Island Beach Resort and the Grenada Grand Beach Resort will remain closed until further notice. Dive Grenada at the Flamboyant Hotel will be reopened for business by December. Eco Dive & Trek, at both the Coyaba Beach Resort and Allamanda Beach Resort, is currently closed until further notice, as is ScubaTech at the Calabash Hotel. Carriacou diving was unaffected by the Hurricane and all tour operators including Carriacou Silver Diving, Lumbadive and Arawak Divers are in full operation. Hotels: Some hotels received little or no damage. Fortunately some of the hotels that experienced wind, water and roof damage had no structural damage. It means that properties like Bel Air Plantation, Calabash Hotel, Grenada Grand Beach Resort, Allamanda Beach Resort, True Blue Bay Resort, Mariposa Hotel and the Monmot Hotel are now open, while other hotels, such as Laluna and the Flamboyant, plan to be back in operation before the end of the year. Blue Horizons Garden Resort will reopen in January 2005. Coyaba Beach Resort has publicly announced that they will soon commence the rebuilding and upgrading of its property from a three-star to a five-star hotel. 70% of its rooms have to be completely demolished. The resort plans to reopen in October 2005. LaSource, Rex Grenadian and Siesta Hotel will be closed until further notice while Spice Island Beach Resort will be closed for one year. For more information on Grenada’s recovery and relief efforts, please visit www.grenadaemergency.com, the official website of the Grenada Embassy and Grenadian Consulates, in conjunction with the Grenada Board of Tourism's US Representatives. For additional information, please visit the Grenada Board of Tourism’s official website at www.grenadagrenadines.com.