Blue Flag and Pick a Pier partner to launch exclusive Popeye® Sail Club

With the increasing demand for berth space, industry leaders are finding new ways to sustain our marinas while continuing to adamantly protect the ocean. Blue Flag’s digital partner, Pick a Pier, is at the forefront of this mission and has just introduced an exciting new initiative — the Popeye® Sail Club.  

Pick a Pier is a leading online platform that connects boaters and marinas, streamlining the berth reservation process and simplifying communication. Now it’s becoming even stronger with the launch of Popeye® Sail Club.

Popeye® the Sailor Man, the tough, loveable seafarer from the comics is now more helpful, more intelligent, and even stronger with technology — the perfect mascot to champion an international sustainability initiative.

 “We’re excited by the incredible opportunity to engage directly with boaters to promote sustainable boating practices,” said International Blue Flag Director Johann Durand. “With Popeye at the helm, we can make the message of responsible sailing far more memorable.”

 Here’s how it works

 For every sail, boaters earn points, which can be redeemed at participating marinas as credit towards reservation fees. By reserving berth space in advance on Pick a Pier’s platform, boaters can now sail with ease while maintaining the flexibility to change their reservation up until the day of arrival.

 Knowing with certainty exactly where to dock in two weeks is reward enough. But with a Popeye® Sail Club membership, boaters will be further rewarded for those advance reservations. Boaters can book a berth with priority access at some of the most sustainable marina destinations and get points for every USD/Euro spent. They’ll also get points for reporting that their own berthing space will be vacant when they sail away from their home marina. The programme encourages boaters to plan ahead by giving up to 3 times the points on early reservations.

 Points can then be redeemed for discounted reservations and other marina services. On top of that, Pick a Pier will have special offers and promotions just for members that make points even more worthwhile.

Popeye® Sail Club is launching by invitation only and boaters at participating marinas will be the first to get their exclusive membership. Other boaters can be added to the waitlist at www.popeyesailclub.com

“We are extremely proud of this one-of-a-kind programme. Popeye® Sail Club is taking the Pick a Pier experience one step further. The club is designed for the most passionate boaters, empowering them to easily sail in a more sustainable way — and rewarding them along the way,” explains Idan Cohen, CEO of Pick a Pier.

Promoting better sustainability practices 

Popeye® Sail Club is built around sharing economy principles that promote better use of existing resources and sustainability.  

Pick a Pier is already helping Blue Flag marinas optimise their resources without compromising the environment or creating more work for their staff. Allowing marinas to do more with what they have reduces the need for marina construction or expansion. 

But working with marinas and incentivizing boaters to plan ahead to increase sustainability is just one piece of the puzzle. In partnership with Blue Flag, Pick a Pier will ask that new boaters take the Sustainable Boating Pledge and adhere to eco-friendly practices at sea and on-shore. 

 The five basic principles are simple and incredibly effective in raising awareness among boaters and promoting a healthy ecosystem. 

1. Protect the Waters
   Refuel with care and never dump waste into the ocean

2. Safeguard Marine Life
   Anchor and fish only in permitted areas 

3.  Minimise Waste
   Avoid single-use plastics and use eco-friendly cleaning products when possible. 

4. Be More Considerate
   Be mindful of other boaters in your vicinity. Dump sewage only where permitted. 

5. Stay Watchful 
   Report violations and inform authorities about hazards. 

Blue Flag is committed to ensuring a resilient ocean, and Popeye® Sail Club will help us reach more boaters, showing everyone that ease of use, profitability and sustainability go hand in hand.  

Blue Flag has begun using a new material for their flags created by recycled PET bottles

Blue Flag has made alterations to their fabric being used for the Flag, in partnership with Semaphore, the flag is now created utilising 100% recycled PET bottles.

Blue Flag works alongside Semaphore who produce the Flags which are used on certified beaches. Figures from 2020 production included orders that were dispatched toward forty-eight countries covering four continents. In 2021 the partnership with Semaphore was renewed with new material being used for the flags, offering the same products and sizes as before however with a new material: PET Flag. 

This recycled material is made from used PET bottles that are collected in supermarkets and other collection points in western Europe. After collection, the bottles are chopped up in little flakes and then melted into polyester yarn. This yarn is then used to create the new flag fabric on which the Blue Flag is screen printed in The Netherlands.

The new PET Flag material was rolled out during the 2021 season on Blue Flag beaches all over the world with very positive results.

Team Semaphore is very happy with the new contract and we look forward to continuing working with the Blue Flag organisation! -Team Semaphore

Tobago Boat Operator achieves the International Blue Flag award

The International Blue Flag Jury has granted the prestigious Blue Flag award to the Tobago tourism boat operator Top Catch Charters. Top Catch Charters has now entered an elite class of Blue Flag awarded boat operators and is currently the only Blue Flag awarded boat in the English speaking Caribbean.

The achievement of this renowned environmental award has meant that Top Catch Charters operations has complied with standards pertaining to environmental management, environmental education and information, safety and services, social responsibility and responsible operation around wildlife. The staff of Top Catch Charters has demonstrated their ongoing commitment to adhering to international best practices as it relates to providing quality service and safety standards to their guests whilst celebrating and protecting the natural environment.  Ms Shivonne Peters, Manager of Top Catch Charters explains what it means for the business to achieve this award.

“The Blue Flag award for us represents the fulfillment of our goal to provide eco-friendly tours to our customers and transform Tobago’s tourism product. For us at Top Catch Charters, we began our journey with the concept of a sustainable business model; one that ensured we minimized our environmental impact. By developing simple strategies such as saying no to single use plastics and providing alternatives through locally sourced materials such as calabash and bamboo, we truly believed we could encourage our clients to practice sustainable habits, well beyond the duration of our tours. We certainly hope that this is the start of a movement in the tour industry, not only in Tobago but in Trinidad and Tobago. Ultimately, it proves for us and says to the world that sustainable tourism is possible in Tobago as we can successfully balance economic activities with environmental conservation”.

Top Catch Charters was one of four tourism boat operators that were recipients of grant funding by the UNDP Global Environmental Facility Small Grants Programme (GEF SPG) Green Innovator Challenge in Trinidad and Tobago. As a beneficiary of the grant Top Catch Charters received the necessary assistance and services to apply for the Blue Flag programme and ultimately accede to the necessary criteria to achieve the prestigious environmental award. Dr. Sharda Mahabir, National Coordinator GEF SGP UNDP, also extended her congratulations and expectations, 

 “GEF SGP is pleased to support Green T&T in their efforts to strengthen tourism by certifying boat operators under Blue Flag. This certification will put our beautiful sister isle on the map in terms of initiatives in support of the Blue Economy. We look forward to positive outcomes and benefits coming out of this project and more GEF SGP projects on the sister isle.”

The National Operator for the Blue Flag programme Green T&T worked alongside Top Catch Charters and three other tourism boat operators as part of the project proposal 'Reducing environmental footprint and improving eco-friendly Blue Economy by supporting Blue Flag certification for four small tour boat operators in Tobago.' Top Catch Charters was the first to submit their application to the Blue Flag National Jury, which was indicative of their steady commitment to preserving their natural environment and reducing their operations environmental footprint, inspite of the challenges posed by the COVID 19 pandemic. Joanna Moses-Wothke, CEO of Green T&T further elaborates what this achievement means for Top Catch and local tourism in general.

“This is a very significant accomplishment and there is a lot to celebrate. This is the first and only Blue Flag certified Boat Operator in the English-speaking Caribbean, the only Blue Flag certified site in Trinidad and Tobago and the first and only Blue Flag certified site for Tobago. Top Catch Charters is trailblazing when it comes to environmental performance for tour boat operators, especially on the heels of theTravel Industry Club (TIC) Destination Awards in which Tobago was given 2nd place. We at Green T&T are very proud to be a part of the ground-breaking achievements and we look forward to our continued work with Top Catch Charters and other tour boat operators and beaches on the island.”

 The Blue Flag programme is owned and managed by the international, non-governmental, non-profit organisation FEE (the Foundation for Environmental Education) based in Denmark. The program has been operating in Europe since 1987 and has become a highly respected and recognised award, working to bring together the tourism and environmental sectors at local, regional and national levels to ensure sustainable tourism.  Currently, the Blue Flag is flying at over 4,600 sites in 47 countries and has over 80 blue flag awarded boat operators worldwide. Mr Narendra Ramgulam, Director of Product Development & Destination Management, Tobago Tourism Agency Limited describes the significance of this achievement to the destination of Tobago.

“This Blue Flag award for Top Catch showcases the strong environmental work that has gone into setting Tobago apart from its regional competitors. Last year, destination Tobago achieved pilot status for 3 Blue Flag beaches, earlier this year we followed up with aligning our accommodation sector to the Green Key certification, and now our tourism boat operators like Top Catch are on board to fulfill the destination's strategic sustainable advantage. 

This is the first private-public partnership of its kind on the island, and its success will act as a catalyst for other tourism operators to come on board so we can transform Tobago together. There is still a long road ahead in achieving our sustainability goals for Tobago, our residents and our visitors, and we will continue to foster the stakeholder partnerships necessary to ensure continuity, rejuvenation, revitalization and success as we move the destination forward together.

While we enjoy the success of our first official Blue Flag designation for Tobago, we at the Tobago Tourism Agency Limited are proud of Top Catch for leading the way and fulfilling the criteria set out by the Foundation for Environmental Education to make this possible.  We are also grateful to our partners at Green T&T for their support which made this a reality.

As a foundational principle of FEE for the roll-out of the Blue Flag programme in Trinidad and Tobago, a National Jury comprised of local stakeholders, discerns on all Blue Flag applications. Upon approval by the National Jury the application is forwarded to the International Jury for final vetting and approval. In Trinidad and Tobago the National Jury comprises of representatives from the Ministry of Tourism, Division of Tourism, Culture and Transportation- Tobago House of Assembly, Tobago representative of the Trinidad and Tobago Life Saving Society, Community Development Enterprise Development and Labour, Solid Waste Management Company Limited, Department of Modern Studies, Signal Hill Secondary School, Environmental Management Authority, Division of Health Wellness and Family Development- Tobago House of Assembly, Yacht Services Association of Trinidad and Tobago and Tobago Tourism Agency Ltd.