Curaçao couple credits Jamaica for flourishing travel business
Published:Monday | June 13, 2022 | 12:09 AMAinsworth Morris/Gleaner Writer
Sadira Henriquez, managing director, Irie Tours in Curaçao, is happy she and her husband, Dennis Henriquez, journeyed to Jamaica for vacation 16 years ago.
It was inspiration from Jamaica which made the start a tour business, which has grown strength to strength over the years.
At the Global Trade Symposium at the Curaçao Marriott Beach Resort in May, Henriquez told The Gleaner that it was during a family vacation trip in Jamaica that the idea of starting their now Curaçao-based tour company surfaced.
“We got the name, Irie Tours, because, first of all, my husband loves everything about Jamaica. We’ve been to Jamaica a few times,” Henriquez said.
She continued, “I was once with my family at Ocho Rios. We were on the beach and we could hear music coming [across], and he saw this boat passing by called Cool Runnings, and my husband told me, he said, ‘One day, we will have a catamaran and we will call it Cool Runnings.’”
At the time the business idea popped up, her husband was working in his family’s wholesale distributor business and she was employed at an online sports betting company.
She told The Gleaner that it was not long after the business idea popped up that they acted on establishing it in Curaçao.
QUICK DECISION
“We started pretty fast. It was a quick decision. We saw how tourism was slowly picking up on the Island, and we sold my car and bought six scooters. That is how we started back in March of 2006. By the end of 2007, we bought our first school bus and converted it into a colourful tour/party bus. We were the first on the island with this concept,” Henriquez said.
In 2019, the couple found a business partner, the Curaçao Financial Group (CFG), and proceeded to purchase two catamarans; one is called Cool Runnings and the other, Rusty Marange.
From six scooters initially, they now have 10 buses and they do boat trips around the island of Curaçao for sunset sails and snorkelling. They also have 32 persons employed.
Over the years, the company has received major awards, such as a Tripadvisor 2020 Travelers’ Choice Award and the Tripadvisor 2016, 2015, 2014 and 2013 Certificate of Excellence awards.
“Business is booming. Curaçao’s business has picked up really well. We are doing even better than before COVID-19. We feel blessed,” Henriquez said.
In addition to Irie Tours now making moves in Curaçao based on a Jamaican inspiration, the new Jamaican-owned Sandals Royal Curaçao hotel, which will be opened in June, is to provide a boost for their business.
Already, before the opening of the hotel, they have bookings for tours with sunset sails, open-air bus ride, city rides and catamaran tours.
Christy Sjollema, supervisor of operations at Irie Tours, told The Gleaner that the company is excited about its proposed partnership with Sandals.
“We are very excited that Sandals Royal Curaçao is opening up next week, and we have lots of bookings already for Irie Tours,” she briefly said.
Sjollema said the catamaran tour is among the more popular activities in demand.
She said the upcoming guests from Sandals can expect amazing snorkelling stops and barbecues on board.