Dear Sir,

What a delight to read in your headlines last Saturday that “ ... the 35th America’s Cup in 2017 and it was a great success, for both the event and for the island”.

Zane DeSilva, the tourism minister is reported to have told attendees at the superyacht forum in Monaco that the 2017 sailing race had “attracted close to 100 superyachts to Bermuda”. He continued: “Fifty-one of those superyachts participated in the superyacht programme that was created especially to support this internationally recognised event.”

Finally a PLP minister has recognised the value of the event which was decried at that time. While I commend the minister for attempting to get superyachts to Bermuda, it will only work should there be an equivalent event.

No one in the right mind will pay a charter fee of $365,000 per week to cruise from Hamilton to St George’s and back into the Great Sound.

If you are in Tortola, one can cruise to St Maarten, Nevis, St Bart’s and the other islands, but unless there is another major event, it will not fly here.

ANTONY SIESE

Berry Hill Road, Paget