Industry Reports

The Bermuda Tourism Authority (BTA) has released the KPMG Economic Impact Report for the 2023 Butterfield Bermuda Championship, revealing that the event contributed $17.7 million to Bermuda’s economy. The annual report, commissioned by the BTA, provides a detailed assessment of the return on investment from the tournament’s sponsorship.

The 2022 Butterfield Bermuda Championship generated a total economic impact of $17 million, an increase of $5.1 million over the 2021 Championship, according to a report by KPMG Advisory Limited. The overall impact is comprised of incremental on-island spending of $7.2 million which then permeates into the economy, through value-chain spending (indirect effects) of $3.3 million, and further rounds of spending (induced effects) of $6.5 million which generated total economic impact of $17 million. This along with media exposure translated into a 609% return on investment. 

The 2021 Butterfield Bermuda Championship ‘PGA TOUR’ has been hailed as a success after attracting significant media exposure worth over $13 million plus driving $11.9 million into Bermuda’s recovering tourism industry. 

The second staging of the PGA TOUR Bermuda Championship last year generated a much-needed $13.2 million boost for the island’s pandemic-injured economy, according to a newly released KPMG economic impact report. With over 430 hours of global television coverage and significant engagement across media platforms, the report identified $12.8M value of tangible media exposure.

The inaugural PGA TOUR Bermuda Championship in 2019 generated an estimated $22.6 million in value for Bermuda, leading to a 320-percent return on investment, according to a KPMG economic impact report. The event drove more than 2,000 visitors to the island and racked up almost three-million viewers on television.

A new study indicating Bermuda’s need for hospitality workers will increase as several new hotels open on the island within the next two years; these include the St. Regis Bermuda Resort in St. George’s, and Azura Bermuda and Bermudiana Beach Resort, both in Warwick. The Bermuda Hospitality Needs Assessment Study, carried out by PwC Bermuda for the BTA, found that by 2021 the gap between Bermuda’s future talent supply and demand for hospitality workers may range between 555 and 814 positions, driven largely by 335 new hotel rooms due to come available. The range is based on differing scenarios in 2021, depending on whether new properties open by target dates.

This year’s MS Amlin World Triathlon Series event in Bermuda generated an estimated $4.7 million for the island’s economy, along with another $9.3 million in projected future tourism, according to a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). The April 28 event contributed $300,000 more to the island’s gross domestic product (GDP) than last year’s inaugural event, according to PwC. The 2019 edition also cost less to produce and attracted more participating athletes.

Lord Cultural Resources worked with the Government of Bermuda, the Bermuda Tourism Authority and about 100 local stakeholders to create an action plan for arts and cultural tourism island-wide, particularly in St. George's. An abridged version of the plan is now available to stakeholders online. Many of the plan's ideas and recommendations have been folded into the National Tourism Plan because arts and cultural tourism are an important part of the island's tourism future. You can access the full diagnostic National Tourism Plan via BTAConnect.

The new Visitor Services Centre erected on Hamilton's waterfront in 2019 is part of a strategic approach to increase the amount of money travellers spend on the island by more seamlessly connecting them with tourism entrepreneurs. “The point of this facility is to give our visitors one central place to plan their itinerary and then get out and about across the island – to experience more and spend more,” says Bermuda Tourism Authority Chief Executive Kevin Dallas.

Read our article on the Visitor Services Centre strategy across the island or watch our explanatory video below.

Flora Duffy’s dominant hometown victory at MS Amlin World Triathlon Bermuda was not only a celebratory sports moment for the country but also an economic win, according to PwC's economic impact study on the 2018 event.

• The 2018 event generated an overall economic impact of $4.4 million, representing a 152 percent return on the $2.9 million investment by the Bermuda government
• Media coverage of World Triathlon Bermuda 2018 netted an estimated 1.1-million viewers, generating $17.8 million in estimated advertising equivalent
• In all, 890 individuals travelled to the island for World Triathlon Bermuda 2018, some 304 of whom were event participants.

For more, see:

• Economic Impact Infograph
• Read Full Impact Study