Story and photos by Bob Schulman

Stanley Camelia, at 60 graying but still ruggedly handsome, has lived on this Dutch-accented island off the coast of Venezuela all of his life. He's seen Curacao's oil refinery - for years its main source of income - pass from the Shell Oil Co. to local owners, and most recently to Venezuela's state oil company under a multi-million-dollar lease.

He's also seen tourism become a bigger and bigger source of local income, starting with a few hotel-resorts in the 1960s. He's seen over two dozen more resorts pop up across his 40-mile-long island over the years. He's seen casinos spring up, too, along with golf courses and timeshares.

Now, Curacao's tourism scene is heading into the big time, and Camelia- today an "Official Tourist Guide"- is itching to get in on the action. So are thousands of other islanders.

On the horizon is an expected tidal wave of tourists as a broadside of new or expanded hotels debut over the next few years. They're expected to hike the island's lodging inventory to around 6,300 rooms, up from around 3,300 last year.

At present, Curacao's quarter-million annual visitors are mainly from Holland and elsewhere in Europe, with tourists from the U.S. accounting for only 20 percent of the tally- one of the lowest ratios of U.S. tourists in the Caribbean. But local officials expect to see that percentage double by 2009 as more hotels come on the scene with names familiar to U.S. vacationers.

Reportedly planned to open later in 2007 and over the next few years are resorts with such well-known brands as Hyatt Regency, Marriott Renaissance, Westin and Wyndham.

The Curacao Tourist Board, or CTB, has a Master Plan for the remainder of the decade that covers everything from hotel development to educating the island's 130,000 residents on the economic plusses of increased tourism- and on how they can personally benefit. For example, the upturn in visitors should prompt opportunities for all kinds of new businesses, from farming co-ops to transportation companies to new dive shops, bakeries and laundries.

Better Beaches, Dive Sites and Goats



Among key projects on the CTB's checklist are improvements to Curacao's beaches and diving sites along with island-wide cleanliness and security programs. The agency even has plans to improve the quality of the island's goats- the meat staple of residents and a gourmet item on tourist menus- through special breeding projects.

Camelia says, "I think the coming tourism boom will open the door to a better quality of life for all of us (islanders) while at the same time showcasing Curacao to the world."

Johnny Salazar, a local executive and a friend of Camelia - who seems to know everyone on the island- points out that Curasaoans have a unique culture that harmoniously mixes 54 nationalities and 30 religions.

Originally inhabited by Arawak Amerindians, the island was taken by Spanish troops shortly after the discovery of "The New World." It was occupied by the Dutch in 1634 and, except for brief invasions by the English and French, has been associated with Holland ever since. The official language of the island is Papiamento, a blending of seven languages based mostly on Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese. Residents typically speak Dutch, Spanish and English individually as well.

Historic Temple, Dolphin Therapy

Long a strong draw to Curacao is the Mikve Israel-Emanuel Synagogue, said to be the oldest continuously operating synagogue in the Western Hemisphere. It was dedicated in 1732. Jewish visitors from throughout the world come to the temple to pray or for weddings or coming-of-age ceremonies, according to Gigi Scheper, a temple guide. She said she typically escorts as many as 5,000 people a year through the temple.

Also getting more and more attention on the island is the Curacao Dolphin Therapy and Research Center, which treats children with problems ranging from hearing issues to Down's syndrome. During two-week treatment sessions, the children are periodically rewarded by swims or other interactions with specially trained dolphins at an adjacent aquarium.

Curacao, the largest and most populous of the so-called A-B-C islands (for Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao) in the Southern Caribbean, is one of five islands known as the Netherlands Antilles, a self-governing part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The others are Bonaire, St. Maarten, Saba and St. Eustatius.

Getting There

A major milestone in Curacao's plan for the future was passed last year with the opening of the island's new airport terminal. The tab: $44 million. Designed to handle 1.6 million passengers a year, the terminal is presently served by carriers including American Airlines from its connecting gateway at Miami, Continental from Newark, American Eagle from San Juan and KLM from Amsterdam. Airport officials say they're putting a high priority on getting more airlines to serve Curacao, and from more gateways, particularly in the U.S.

More information: Visit the Curacao Tourist Board at www.curacao.com.