May 2015
| Business World
151
central Europe and Scandinavia, this is our
main markets where we work with two op-
erators doing marketing and trade shows.”
Intimately intertwined with the pageantry
of the past – with the likes of Rita Hayworth
and Robert Mitchum pictured enjoying a re-
treat to the Blue Haven Hotel forever frozen
in time, Pistil hopes to continue to carry on
the tradition via a transition combining old
school chic, modern manners, and ease of ac-
cess into Tobago.
“We still want to be one of the leading hotels
in the Caribbean,” he said. “We have planned
to expand to 50 more rooms behind the
beach, which could be a goal for the next five
to seven years, but that depends on the tour-
ist board and the government pushing tour-
ism initiatives and the increasing the num-
ber of flights coming in. As an island, you’re
depending on flights, you can’t swim to an
island – most of the people come by plane
and a minority comes by ferry.”
Filled with decadence, romance and his-
torical splendor, the Blue Haven Hotel has
enjoyed a rebirth after half a century in the
dark. With a bright future ahead, Pistil en-
visions the quaint property reaching its goal
by focusing on a hospitality industry rite of
passage: selfless standards.
“What sets us apart from the competition
is the hotel itself and the glamorous history
that we have – not many hotels have that, es-
pecially in the Caribbean,” he said. “Besides
the idyllic location, as a boutique hotel we
can also offer smaller and more personalized
service. Our goal is to build that up and mar-
ket it, and it’s working well, since our guests
continue to come back and compliment us.”
