WASHINGTON, D.C., June 9, 2019 — Aside from the focused leadership being provided by Minister of Tourism and Aviation Dionisio D’Aguilar and his executive team at the Ministry of Tourism, there are some ancillary reasons why The Bahamas’ tourism industry currently is experiencing tremendous growth, reinforcing the reputation of the Islands of The Bahamas as one of the world’s leading tourist destinations.
Of course, the opening of the Baha Mar Resort on the Cable Beach strip in New Providence and the launch of the FlyAway Advertising Campaign featuring Lenny Kravitz, the Bahamian-American rock superstar, can rightly be credited as being two of the main reasons for the tremendous increase in visitors to The Bahamas.
But there have also been some unexpected public relations windfalls for The Bahamas as a tourist haven. For example, author Jeff Todd, who writes by the pen name T.R. Todd, continues to promote his book “Pigs of Paradise,” written about the phenomenal swimming pigs in the Exumas.
Todd recently visited the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism office in New York and took a photo with staff members at the tourist office, who later posted it on their Facebook page with the following caption: “It was such a pleasure having Author of Pigs of Paradise T.R Todd visit our office today!! All the best with your award ceremony this evening.”
Apparently, Todd was in New York for an awards ceremony. It would be interesting to find out whether “Pigs of Paradise” won an award, given the fact that the pigs that are the subject of his book continue to be extremely popular with visitors to their Bahamian habitat.
A press release early in 2018 announcing that Skyhorse Publishing, an independent book publishing company had acquired the rights to “Pigs of Paradise,” noted that in “recent years, the swimming pigs have been seen by millions across the globe from North America to Europe to Asia.”
“Already a key economic driver for Exuma, the swimming pigs have spread to other islands in The Bahamas, with the world’s fascination for the attraction only seeming to grow,” the release noted.
Jeff Todd was quoted as saying, “Watching the world take notice of these creatures has been an incredible journey. It probably shouldn’t surprise me anymore, but the hype and momentum surrounding the swimming pigs is truly amazing. The contrast of the most beautiful water and beaches in the world with an often misunderstood animal has proven to be a force in the age of social media. But I think what people will soon appreciate is that the journey on how we got here is also a great story.”
The press release revealed that Todd “first took notice of the swimming pigs in 2014, when he teamed up with Peter Nicholson, the largest owner at Grand Isle Resort in Exuma, and Bahamian director Charlie Smith, to create a film on the attraction, When Pigs Swim.”
The release added: “The movie proved to be a hit. After touring in film festivals in the United States, often with a piglet in tow on the red carpet, the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism incorporated the pigs into its global marketing campaign. That set off a chain of unprecedented publicity. Since then, the swimming pigs have been featured in most major publications, including the New York Times, New York Times Magazine, Travel & Leisure, the Washington Post, Forbes, CNN, The London Telegraph, Daily Mail, BuzzFeed, USA Today, Toronto Star, the Globe and Mail, and hundreds of others. They have also found their way into a myriad of television shows, everything from ABC’s The Bachelor, NBC’s Today Show and even popular children’s cartoons.”
Speaking about his book, Todd said, “The book is about how and why they went viral, but what I love most about it is being able to provide a history of Exuma and an opportunity to stop and think about how we interact with animals. It’s funny, but I want people to come away from the book thinking a bit more about our relationship with pigs, and indeed the wider animal kingdom. I think the pigs give us a unique lens with which to consider our relationship with animals. And I think this is the right time to be thinking more about these issues in a new and original way.”
