Today we publish the first in a short series by Richard Humphrey outlining the possibilities for tourism here, and explaining the limitations on the development of the industry.

Make me a prime nominee for 'Biggest Idiot,' above. I had a good laugh at myself after spending four years in a costly and difficult process taking a lot of twists and turns while seeking the opportunity for tourism development in Guyana. The laugh was to find a surprisingly simple, clear tourism vision sitting right there in front my face all the time.

After those four years I prepared and sent to interested investors a business plan and a draft layout of a brochure that offered an 'amazing Amazon vacation experience.' Two venture capitalists, and then a small and dynamic Caribbean hotel chain, Rex Resorts, which has common ownership with African safari resorts, and a large UK wholesale tour operator, came to Guyana for a close look.

There was little disagreement over the vision, accepted as an innovative approach to obvious opportunity. But they each concluded unacceptable 'country risk' - we could make and execute plans perfectly, yet still fail. They cited our various ills we all know too well. My biggest surprise in their conclusions was that they all saw Guyana as just not ready for tourism development, and that I was simply too far ahead of the curve.

It is now highly unlikely that I will ever take active interest in this arena again. On learning this, the Sunday Editor issued a challenge. In four articles, show what you know remains important and useful to understand in building a tourism industry for Guyana, and how to avoid wasting time and resources in the process. Challenge accepted. Maybe these articles will even prove useful to some young Guyanese entrepreneurs who are at the right place on the curve when Guyana must get going with tourism.

If by then some members of the newspapers, TV, radio and press, University of Guyana, Minister and Ministry of Trade and Tourism, Go-Invest, but mostly members of the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG) still are using and remain convinced that eco-tourism is the main product when thinking, planning, describing or selling Guyana tourism, tell them to ban, bury, forget eco-tourism, and do themselves and Guyana a big favour.

Eco-tourism puts environment concerns ahead of business reality, regardless of the unprofitable expenses incurred. This may be acceptable at charity foundations, but is impractical for business, which needs profits. The track record of commercial 'eco-tourism' resorts worldwide is littered with tombstones. Bankers avoid with a vengeance eco-tourism investments. Many surviving 'eco-tourism' resorts are subsidized by environmental lobby groups that use the resort for fund-raising projects and prospects, or as a perk. Other eco-tourism sites depend on the generous subsidies of their owners, 'green millionaires' buying good feelings and images.

The 'Amazon' was my focus for tourist development. We want leisure travellers to make decisions that conclude the most desirable way to spend part of their annual vacation is to visit Guyana, where they enjoy and experience the best in the 'Amazon.' And that choice must be made after they consider hundreds of competing options.

In that context, what can Guyana develop to offer a superb vacation experience with wide appeal? Does Guyana possess any useful (comparative) advantages to develop a unique and valuable vacation destination? Can Guyana connect to, and be identified with this ready-made powerful 'brand' word 'Amazon,' which immediately evokes in many potential travellers' minds exciting, interesting and exotic holidays?

It seems to me almost unbelievable that Guyana is still stuck on selling eco-tourism, missing that we are endowed with a valuable gift, this powerful way to build a tourism industry using 'Amazon.' I know that experienced and knowledgeable operators in tourism conclude that Guyana's real estate, in a transition zone on the northern edge of the Amazon Basin and facing on the Atlantic, is a best physical location to develop a tourist industry in the Amazon Basin.

In the same way 'going on an African Safari' immediately triggers a host of exciting, interesting and romantic images that fill most people's minds with adventure and mystery, so too does 'going into the Amazon.' The same people who go on African Safari will visit the Amazon. Both experiences are seen as world class, or 'collectors' vacations. Both 'African Safari' and 'Amazon' are invaluable words for marketing vacations. Compare that to 'going on an eco-tourism vacation.' That makes me think of tinned corned beef, stale bread and a wet hammock half the night; uncomfortable and a bit rough, but cheap.

A critical part in providing a quality 'Amazon' holiday is having interesting and informed guides who can communicate really well. The main, immediate market to sell 'Amazon' vacations is English-speaking North America. Guyana is the only Amazon Basin country with English as its language. Only here a guest is able to immediately enjoy unrestricted conversation with people they meet in the 'Amazon'. Superb guides are easiest to train without language barriers to overcome. What do people remember most about foreign vacations? Usually conversations with new friends that explain a different lifestyle, and our Amerindians in the mysterious Amazon jungle are winners.

Guyana's Amazon real estate mentioned earlier offers other valuable comparative advantages. First, our Amazon remains pristine. Second, from Mt Roraima over 9,000 feet to the below sea-level mangrove swamps on the Atlantic, Guyana offers the widest diversity of Amazon terrain, plant and animal life, with a multitude of rivers, creeks, rapids and waterfalls scattered throughout. Third, these are all accessible within comparatively short distances.

Venezuela beats Guyana in many ways. Their stretch of coast, their coral islands like Los Roques with breath-taking sea and sand, their Gran Saban with Angel Falls and several other magnificent tepuis beside Mt Roraima, their Andes mountain range make Venezuela truly beautiful.

Venezuela made an atrocious reputation for itself in the travel industry, seen there as unreliable and disorganised, dirty and dangerous. The trail up Mt Roraima on their side is known as the 'Kleenex trail,' with garbage strewn all along the way. Tourism got so out of hand there it had to be closed down for a period several years ago. The Amerindian village at the start of their trail is a good example of why our Amerindians at Paruima reject tourism from what they see in Venezuela - prostitution, rape, drugs, alcohol, and constant disturbance.

But in truth, our Kaieteur Falls and Orinduik and the zoo and manatee ponds in the Gardens are not far behind the Venezuela problems. This aspect is where I understand my potential investor's contention that Guyana is not ready yet - I stopped taking visitors to see those places.

The next article considers how the locations and price levels of your market are determined, and what was selected in my Amazon tourism vision.

In the first of this series of articles on a vision for Guyana's tourism, I wrote that building a tourist industry around 'Amazon' is infinitely more powerful than 'eco-tourism.' Following on now are facts, problems and conclusions used in developing the 'Amazon' vision. Some of these are important for all Guyana tourism visions.

To find the core market for Guyana start with the answer to this fundamental question. Which cities have airline connections that allow potential tourists to both reach a Guyana resort from their home, and return to their front door from that resort, within an accepted amount of time?

Each tourist is different, but two main things set this acceptable travel time limit between points. First, the pain, the degree of discomfort or inconvenience (reaching airport, in the plane seat, going through immigration and customs and so on) in travelling to the destination. Second, the gain, the total quality of the vacation experiences at the resort (romance, excitement, fun, adventure,'status' and so on).

The pain/gain equation applies to every destination. I used it first locating Emerald Tower, then Great Falls, and is why we declined Mainstay when offered to Hotel Tower ten years ago. The pain/gain equation in my Amazon vision equals around ten hours. The main markets are New York, Miami and Toronto, with possible expansion (in the New York example) to Boston or Washington and east to Philadelphia, depending on connecting flight convenience. USA customers live life in a hurry. They tend toward taking shorter vacations more frequently. A Guyana/Amazon vacation costs them two days for destination travel alone; very time expensive. Seven to ten day total duration for such a trip is another 'time zone' to consider.

The cost of the return ticket from those cities is the first fact to point to a 'price level zone.' This price level zone has two main sides. First, what will it cost to provide the minimum safety, comfort and entertainment services these people expect and need? Second which price level zone, starting from that minimum selling price level zone and then checking higher, may give the most benefits to us building a Guyana/Amazon tourist industry?

The aspects of safety and comfort are connected and related to each other, also to your reliability (the tour or flight always leaves on time, your truth in advertising, staff have a professional appearance and so on). These play a big part in pointing to your minimum price level zone. Many twists and turns and a lot of my four years was spent on these subjects.

The conclusion on safety was that no effort can be spared, there is no room to cut any corners here. To cut costs and compromise safety is a false economy. A successful 'Amazon' tourist industry provides guests maximum reduction in risk.

Good protection against malaria, typhoid and gastro is required. Protection against snakebite and miscellaneous bites (beterouge, sandfly, centipede, scorpion, and bats) required. Interior flights and boat travel must address customer's life insurance requirements. All trails and swimming areas need good preparation and maintenance. Provision for immediate and effective medical attention, including evacuation if necessary, must be a calm, established procedure.

Emerald Tower and Great Falls both experienced bushmaster snake-bites already, and two drowning deaths at Madewini. Going into the 'Amazon' is inherently 'dangerous.' Customers want adventure, but no danger. They want their videos and photographs to reflect that 'adventure' back home. You have a conflict to resolve. The solution in my vision is a close monitor of the guest constantly and pre-planning their movements, but without intrusion that makes them aware of these procedures.

Another whole area of concern is criminal activity against your tourists, natural targets. The abysmal state of our security forces were another important factor in investor's evaluations that Guyana is not ready for tourism. Consider not just the risks in Georgetown, but near any border with hit and run possibilities, landings or tracks with illegal miners, along Shell Beach with pirates, and inadvertent contact with movement of drugs. My vision reduces the problem with inaccessible location of lodges.

Comfort in my vision accepts that good beds, own flushing toilets, clean shower are basic, even in the 'Amazon.' Other fundamentals are electric fans, adequate lighting and abundant quality raingear like ponchos and large umbrellas. Rain illustrates the need to plan down to fine details. What stock of excellent books, board games, cards, dice and tables (poker, bridge?) guests require during long rains? Taking from the African Safari and relatively inexpensive to do, well-set tables for meals, in particular dinner, with candlelight and oil lanterns all around works as well in the Amazon as on safari. Great service is a state of mind, the total responsibility of management, and continued failure means another manager.

Entertainment has four main aspects. First, live through a winter up north and you then know the attractions of sea and sand. Every lodge must provide at least one good swim and sun area on a creek or river. A safe dip in a pristine creek, taking a Jacuzzi under a small fall, a comfortable lounge chair, a good book and a rum punch in the mysterious Amazon can beat some sea and sand. And no vendors.

Second, a canopy walkway (with several observation/relaxation/feeding point platforms) is mandatory at each lodge. Seventy per cent of the Amazon life is up there, and it satisfies perfectly safe 'adventure' to take home. A platform at night is romance that beats Viagra. Consider how these walkways can pay back fifty times their cost in three years.

Third, each couple (or individual on additional payment) has always their own private guide, who frees them to do what they want when they want. The guide, trained in all safety matters, is the resort's monitor. All activities have strict procedure and directions the guide follows. In addition, the guide provides the 'interpretation of nature' in the Amazon that informs and fascinates. These guides are a major opportunity for high paying (and good tips) jobs, equal to supervisor of department status and responsibility. Our Amerindian population in the interior can provide excellence in this role.

Lastly, food and beverage variety and quality features 'contemporary Caribbean cuisine,' taking full advantage of Guyana's fruit and vegetable abundance. It must match the 'selling price level zone' selected. The location's all?inclusive limitation that precludes going out to eat or drink elsewhere demands high standards. Guests certainly test you here. Strategically placed, unexpected rest and refreshment or eating points for lunch and tea, overlooking some particular interesting feature are used (dinner on a canopy platform one night?) to surpass the customer's expectations. Such features are never seen in advertising.

The next article considers a typical resort business in the vision, sales and marketing, and how to avoid wasting time and resources.

There is a hidden agenda in the second article on my Guyana tourism vision. I wanted you, on your own while reading, to move toward the same page with me regarding the 'price level zone.' My 'price level zone' is one of a few conclusions that remain bulletproof.

We start with a higher price roundtrip ticket (a tourist could visit Europe for similar cost), both in money and time. Then we enter an environment that demands expensive safety and security measures (each couple's own guide), a higher price zone. Feedback from guests clearly shows basic comforts are fully expected, so are mandatory. These are more costly in the Amazon; higher costs again. And the facts are the higher your price goes, more, higher paying jobs are created, more profit and taxes generated, more stability and less negative factors gained. This holds true as high as around US$800/couple/night all-inclusive (all meals and drinks, transportation, services, tours, personal guide), once good value is there. Ask in any established tourism country, "If you could choose, which price level most benefits you?" the higher ones are chosen every time, and many regret they had that main focus, then let it slip away.

A reader may be ready to join me in this conclusion. But you need strong confirmation that a lot of people from New York, Miami and Toronto are both able and willing to pay for such a vacation. The affluence is certainly in the USA, with 43 million affluent heads of household earning over US$75,000 a year, half earn over US$100,000 per year.

So it comes down to two main parts. First, you make full use of Guyana's comparative advantages, placing lodges at points of super excellence in our Amazon. Further, your 'entertainment' there takes full advantage of these high quality locations, to offer a unique experience with great satisfaction to the guests, delivered with consistent good service. Guyana offers the Amazon visit of a lifetime, Kenya the Safari of a lifetime.

The second part is this: people cannot buy what they do not know about. How can you afford, at the pioneering stage of a new business in a new industry, to pay for advertising to tell them? Well you can't and don't; it takes an enormous advertising budget to make the needed impact. Guyana has a golden opportunity sitting right in front our noses that solves the problem.

Already there are clever resorts that embrace new, unusual, innovative or interesting aspects in their product, but not just for customer's satisfaction. They are for capturing good Public Relations (PR). These provide the travel press great material to use to write successful articles that sell magazines and newspapers, and producing attention-grabbing travel TV. This in turn generates even millions of dollars of free advertising for you. Further, such reports carry the highest credibility selling people.

A new resort that stays fully booked for three years after one good story in a leading travel magazine is not that unusual. Of course, the resort delivered when the guests arrived. A negative review can certainly impact resorts for five years when it's bad.

From the very beginning we need strategy to present English-speaking Guyana's magnificent Amazon vacations in a manner that incorporates a treasure trove of PR 'diamonds' for all media. Using an experienced, well- respected and connected PR representative working with your Tourist Board, the right press comes in a timely manner to look for 'diamonds' in Guyana. Then you need a bare minimum for advertising.

In the description of my 'amazing Amazon vacation experience' below can you pick out the PR 'diamonds'? Some you saw already - every lodge must have a canopy walkway (Guyana, the country with most walkways, longest walkway, most astounding walkways, and so on.) Each couple's personal guide gives a life-enhancing understanding into the working of Amazon ecology. He did it in a most entertaining manner, even while helping with your camera bag and saving your wife from slipping on rocks several times. Every resort has marvellous Amazon creek swimming with natural Jacuzzis. The wide range of fresh tropical fruit always available, and vegetables used in the featured 'contemporary Amazon cuisine' intrigue any gourmet.

In an earlier vision the plan was to copy African Safari canvas luxury tents with their 30's Hemmingway charm. But we realised that those 'diamonds' belong to Africa already, and canvas was not best for Amazon conditions anyway (wood ants, fungus, torrential rain, heat, humidity and so on).

We formed a team to design from scratch using modern space age materials, 'AmaZone' tents, best for Amazon and the vision's conditions. The real coup was finding an architect and a structural engineer from MIT, America's leading university in all engineering fields, who became enthusiastic about this unusual challenge and project. The MIT architect had his own private practice specializing in unusual, innovative structures, while still teaching at MIT on a limited schedule. He won a prize in the annual Business Week magazine design competition, and he understood PR well, a valuable plus.

The vision has a central, main camp/resort location, with a series of satellite resorts at nearby super spots. All guests use this main resort for first and last night of their trip. The satellite AmaZone camps are on beautiful waterfalls or rapids, even on Mt Roraima lower escarpment locations. In some places there may be a wet season campsite at the top, and a dry season campsite at the bottom. Each site is prepared with basic infrastructure, and the operation and AmaZones can move to best choice for the prevailing weather season. AmaZones are designed for such moving, and connect to the infrastructure easily and quickly. Satellite resorts in use are kept at near full capacity, with projected volume deciding how many are open at any one time.

All resorts provide not only telephone, but also Internet connection and satellite TV, important during long rain. Stay connected in this Amazon. Some resorts have open concrete bunkers along the side of a creek or river, with swimming pool floodlights and a Plexiglas front view into the water. Feeding occurs every night before and after dinner. Observing in comfort sitting in the bunker, the 'live underwater show' in progress is often unforgettable.

This vision took many quantum leaps, but here is the biggest. Transportation from the main camp/resort to the satellite resorts is by contracted helicopter service ('diamond'). This provides the only practical access to the most astounding locations. Custom helicopter tours available.

"This is crazy. How in the world can that be financially feasible?" Well accept that large investors experienced in tourism, or with very deep pockets, are needed now. The obvious best choice is a 'flag' such as Hilton or Marriott ('diamond')! Those investors are hardly interested in a couple of resorts with 15 or 25 units each. But a plan that deals with, say, 8 satellite resorts, each with from 15 to 40 'AmaZones' thus carrying a total of 200 to 300 AmaZones or units, is interesting.

Last Sunday's article touched on the conclusion that experienced, well-connected, larger players in the travel and tourism industry are needed if Guyana is to develop a world-class tourism industry selling the Amazon. But these players are hardly interested in one or two 30 unit resorts or lodges, regardless of potential, or how profitable, innovative and exciting.

But a 300 unit Amazon experience for their customers who want to do and see things they couldn't before, which also includes security, comfort and service a Four Seasons or a Hyatt need associated with their brand, is definitely interesting. The Guyana challenge is to get the first of such AmaZone hotels with their satellite lodges established (last part of this article), and successful. Successful means a highly profitable operation which captures wide media attention, and constantly surprises guests giving them more than they expected.

Start with two such AmaZone hotels, and ten years later Guyana's Amazon tourism attracts a minimum of 113,000 visitors or 56,500 couples in a year. Each couple spends an average of 7 nights (all-inclusive) and US$5,000 in Guyana. By then there are 8 AmaZone hotels, each with 7 satellite lodges, and each lodge contains an average of 28 AmaZone units. Some AmaZone hotels may offer stays in two satellite lodges during a couple's visit. Annual occupancy is 75 per cent in a 48 week selling year. Gross revenue is US$282,500,000, but with 30 per cent needed to either pay the industry's unavoidable commissions and/or the flag's 'head office' fees, US$197,750,000 is the target to consider. Two thousand five hundred total AmaZone units at base and satellite lodges provide direct employment for 3,750 persons, with a US$30,000,000 annual payroll. Private capital investment used is US$313,000,000, with each of the 8 entities making an average investment of US$39,000,000.

Guyana Government tourism related expenditure required in the period is US$25,000,000 to US$30,000,000. US$18,000,000 is capital investment, most of which is probably best applied in the first 6 years.

English-speaking Guyana is then, and forever, the place to experience world class, once-in-a-lifetime, soft adventures around the most beautiful and interesting waterfalls and rivers in the mysterious Amazon, the planet's largest rainforest. Guyana offers over 60 AmaZone canopy walkways, designed by a similar or same MIT team, their total length measured in miles, pristine creek Jacuzzis, and an altogether refreshing change from the sea and sand vacation. Enjoy adventure, romance, prestige (a relentless, driving force in affluent America's life) and standards of service, different but comparable to going on the very best African safaris.

Is all this pie in the sky? As seen early in the first article, potential investors, experienced management and marketing people, two of whom had extensive African safari knowledge, and other travel industry executives took the grand sales tour of Guyana by Hotel Tower. Their general consensus? Terrific potential, hair-raising beauty (Roraima, Eteringbang, Sakaika, Paruima with Utchi, Great Falls and awesome parts of the Kamarang river in cloud savanna, the pink Imbaimadai gorges and many falls), this could really be special, travel collector's items! But, 'country risk,' and the 'big one' attitudes were major stumbling blocks. Guyana is not ready for this.

A telling visitor was the Caribbean's leading booking agent for boutique, up-market hotels. He brought along his wife. She turned out to be a quite wonderful New Yorker. She had a successful career with Conde Nast, now retired after ten years as Editor at their Mademoiselle Magazine. Contacts up the yazoo! As we landed at Kaieteur the rain soon started, so we decided to have lunch at the strip hut. She needed to go to the bathroom, and while having lunch you knew one was near from the smell. I checked. Clogged up, filthy, sewage water overflowing an inch deep on the floor, a total disgrace for the nation's leading tourist attraction. That was four years ago. When I inquired a couple months back, it is still like that.

That is not all. Her daughter was fascinated from childhood with manatees, and knew you could feed them grass at the Botanical Gardens in Guyana. She asked her mother to do it for her, and take pictures. Both the daughter's husband and herself were executives at Disney in Los Angeles; more good contacts. When we got there the dark green, dirty water with a ring of garbage along the edge was another total turn-off. She just could not understand how the 'big one' (the Minister) in charge of the zoo and gardens let such a condition exist in the city's most popular public place. She saw also the garbage dump seawall on Sunday afternoon. How can the 'big one' not understand that if you can't fix and look after what you already have, it is pointless building anything else for progress? As it happened, previously as a member of the same big one's team of concerned Guyanese trying to help fix the zoo, we spent much time and effort trying to get across, without success, the exact same message. Anyway, a totally failed effort, the hotel's money wasted, but I learned more about the travel industry, and enjoyed a week of special company. The manatee pond remains the same. Since then, that and the Kaieteur toilets (and the situation at Orinduik, but that's another long story) are easy benchmarks or thermometers that tell the health of tourism development in Guyana.

We seem to remain stuck in the first stages of the economic and political malady, 'failed state syndrome.' At present obvious symptoms include our racial conflicts, the present status and suspect future of the rice, sugar, timber, bauxite and gold industries, the cascade of local business failures and job loss. The mismanaged, poor track record and criminal operating methods that the police force find necessary are other sure symptoms. They are now feared and despised by those who don't have a relative or good contact in the force to protect and represent them in any police matter. This year I hear several variations of the question, "Do the police have the government and the country by the throat?" Potential tourism investors always ask about the business climate, crime levels, the police force, law and the courts, and what are their realities?

Last week's article ended considering that Guyana is stuck in the first part of Failed State Syndrome usually associated with Africa; a devastated, last-stage example seen now in the Congo. Guyana is not the only first stage in the Caribbean. Jamaica is another version, and Trinidad today is confusion that is mostly naked plays for power. Tourism guests or investors are particularly sensitive to the malady's crime profile, which includes a failing police force/legal system joining the underworld, occurring in all three countries.

Returning to Guyana fourteen years ago was a learning experience, almost like living in a never-visited-before country. A friend, long here with an outstanding Guyanese husband, pointed out the ever-growing numbers of 'cockrites,' who surfaced as too many good people continually left. The world's 'longest living insect,' cockroach and a hypocrite crossed made a 'cockrite' in her humour. The good are depleted, the cockcrites prosper and thrive, some become 'big ones.' They add to the evil, the evil/good balance deteriorates until cockcrite ways become the entrenched norm, an ignored consequence compared to 'brain drain.'