"Seventy percent of our guests come from the New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut tri-state area," said Heyliger. The Dutch side has not targeted promotion in Europe as much as it would like to and the combined offices in New York will help.

"The agreement will be based on a memorandum of understanding between both commissions," explained Fleming. Also planned is an upgrade of the island monument between the two countries as well as a new statistical system at the airport. The system will track where arriving guests come from to help the governments better make promotional and marketing decisions.

"Our budget doesn't allow lots of promotion," added Bernadette Davis, director of the French St. Martin Tourist office. The combined efforts are welcomed on both sides of the island as a way in which to better allocate resources in the U.S. market.

"This will allow for maximizing positive exposure on the U.S. market," Commissioner Heyliger told the local newspaper The Daily Herald, on Jan. 17. Fiscal responsibility is the key to success in the increasingly competitive tourism market. Consequently, plans are under way to implement the process as soon as possible.