Swan on Tuesday as he launched a vision of a Bermuda haven for the small boater.

He is demanding an end to punitive taxes for mariners and said the water could be a sanctuary for cramped locals and a big draw to high spending tourists.

Sir John said Front Street trade from cruise ships had dwindled as tourists stayed on board to buy there.

"You can talk to any merchant you want and they will tell you they stand around their shops today and spend more time watching to make sure their goods don't walk out of their shops than they spend time selling the goods.'' "Our goal should be as we increase our hotel occupancies we reduce the amount of cruise ships docking on our shores.

"Cruise boats have become shopping centres, they have become entertainment centres. They have become everything that we're not.

"We give hotels trouble getting in staff but the cruise boats have all the staff they want and we wonder what is happening to our business.

"The cruise industry brings in a lot of people and occupies a lot of space but doesn't bring in revenue.

"We let the numbers get bigger and bigger, they were down under 100,000 and now they are up to almost 200,000.'' He said Bermuda's densely packed island of 3,000 people per square mile compared with just 59 people per square miles in the U.S. meant breathing space was hard to come by.

"When people are living cheek by jaw year after year and sometimes generation after generation we must rethink how we look after our people.'' He said Hamilton could be a yacht basin and said it was time to abolish the tax on boats.

"I think we have the most punitive tax on boats any country could ever have.

"More of our people need to be enjoying the water.

"The locals need places to relax. It's getting harder to relax on the land so when we reduce the cruise boats we've got to find other ways of bringing in revenue.

"People bring their boats and yachts to Bermuda and go to good restaurants and spend much more money than people off the cruise ships. People could use Bermuda as a yacht haven and locals could use it as a means of relaxation, not become cramped up.

"The sea should be our playground. But if it's only for the rich and the famous and people who can afford it, then it's wrong.

"So we do away with the cruise ships eventually and have marinas all over Hamilton and do the same thing in Dockyard and St. George's.

"We will have as many tourists but they are spending tourists.

"We should encourage evening boating, we might even light up some of the threatening spots of rocks but let's remove this punitive tax so people can bring their yachts.

He said his vision for tourism would see one or two hotels going up in the city and the Princess and Sonesta hotels improving their accommodation. Sir John told Hamilton Rotarians: "Let's have smaller hotels around Front Street and other parts of Hamilton. We would build first class hotels in Bermuda to accommodate first class people, we decrease cruise boats so maybe in ten years' time there would be no cruise boats.'' Mr. Swan said he backed the Governments support for the hotel business through recent concessions.

"We have to get tourism back on it's feet again. I think the Government has made an attempt.

"We should set a target even if it means taking funds which would normally bring in tourists to fund new hotels and renovations of old hotels to start getting our bed count up so that we have first class hotels in Bermuda.

He said hotels had failed to compete.

"Unless they have the people to accommodate in a civil way and a progressive way the guests the end result is the hotel is not occupied.

"The hotels aren't working but there has got to be a way to fix them so let's fix them.'' Sir John Swan