Derecho del Turismo en las Américas

Tourism Legislation in The Bahamas 421 and national spokesman for the hotel industry in The Bahamas and for its allied membership of companies, engaged in or providing support to the hotel industry. The Ministry also cooperates with the country’s three (3) private sector Promotion Boards, i.e. the Nassau/Paradise Island Promotion Board, the Grand Bahama Island Tourism Board and the Out‑Island Promotion Board. The Ministry of Tourism also maintains a good working relationship with The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce, which represents the concerns of the business interests in the country, along with the hotel unions, The Bahamas Musicians and Entertainers Union, The Bahamas Taxi Cab Cooperative Union and the Straw Workers Union and Association. Regionally and internationally, The Bahamas cooperates with organisations in the field of promotion and tourism development such as the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), the Association of Caribbean States (ACS), the Organization of American States (OAS), the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA), the Association of Retail Travel Agents (ARTA), the Latin America Confederation of Tourist Organizations (COTAL), the Society of Incentive Travel Executives and Meeting Planners International. The Bahamas participates in the major trade shows and conventions organised by these and other agencies and associations. 1970 Hotels Act and Regulation In 1970, the Government of The Bahamas, on the recommendation of the Ministry of Tourism, passed the Hotels Act. As noted in this Act, provisions were made “ for the licensing of, and the regulation and improvement of standards in, hotels; for the imposition of an hotel guest tax; and for matters connected with or incidental to those purposes” . The Act also established a Hotel Licensing Board to administer the provisions of the Act. With this directive, the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism created a Hotel Licensing Unit as the secretariat to the Hotel Licensing Board. The mission of the Unit is to facilitate a “satisfying Bahama Island vacation experience, through regular inspections of hotels and making recommendations to ensure that hotel operators comply with all aspects of the Hotels Act and Hotel Regulations”. The goal feeding this mission was to ensure that hotels “are maintained at an acceptable standard and that the financial provisions of the Hotels Act are adhered to”. The Bahamas was the first country in the Caribbean to introduce such a licensing system. This system made it mandatory for lodging establishments of