Tourism in Bermuda is a sinking ship ? and Coco Reef hotel director Andrea Jennings is getting off.

"But the ship does not have to be sinking," the controversial director told in frustration last night. "All we have to do is wake up in the morning, and we have to work. That's it. It's a simple formula."

Last night, the Trinidadian-born Ms Jennings revealed that she handed in her resignation three months ago. She will leave her post as director of the newly-renovated hotel on December 31, 2004. Ms Jennings arrived in Bermuda in 2003 when hotelier John Jefferis took over the old Stonington Beach Hotel lease, renaming the resort Coco Reef.

In a letter sent to Mr. Jefferis on September 23, 2004, Ms Jennings wrote: "After careful consideration of the current situation in the local tourism industry, I feel that there is 'no light at the end of the tunnel' here in Bermuda ... In my opinion, the tourism industry in Bermuda is dead in the water. There are too many other opportunities out there, in destinations where the customer comes first."

The unwillingness on the part of staff and the industry as a whole to look after the needs of the customer was a driving force behind her decision. "It is very difficult to be part of a dying industry with industry partners not willing to work together to make effective change," she wrote.

"There are too many world-wide destinations that show positive growth in the industry due to people's willingness for success and hard work."

The great lack of co-operation from many members of staff made large events nearly impossible to plan at the hotel, she said. "How many more of these events can we successfully pull off, when in the future we as the managers are all burnt out from covering up for the unwilling staff?"

To , she added: "In this business you are not opening your doors for management, for staff, for unions, or for the industry. You are opening your doors for the customer ... and they determine the direction the industry takes."

All the rights which are taken for granted in the Western world, she said, are the result of "everything, all the hard work our founding fathers have done".

Bermudians, however, seem to have forgotten that. "There's no hunger here," she said. "There's no hunger. But whatever you enjoy today, if you don't manage it today, you will lose it tomorrow."

Bad blood between staff and management at the hotel rapidly came to a boiling point in the months after Mr. Jefferis took over the lease in 2003, with staff staging sit-outs over pay and management practices. Leaked memos revealing discord was rife at the hotel, while resignations, layoffs, accusations of dishonesty, and investigations by Immigration have all added to the problems simmering at the resort.

Opinion has always been sharply divided on Ms Jennings, with both staff and guests alike vocal in their praise and criticism of the Trinidadian director.

In her letter to Mr. Jefferis, Ms Jennings praised the management at Coco Reef. "The management team ... has and continues to be exceptional in the performance of their duties. They rise to each occasion, always with the customer in mind."

However, she added: "My reputation and professional integrity is at stake if I continue to work in Bermuda."

Though she declined to reveal where she was heading, Ms Jennings confirmed that she would be leaving the Island. In her letter to Mr. Jefferis she wrote that she had been "in discussions with a certain company about a future career opportunity ... The company has been very persistent." She finally accepted their offer.

Bermuda is a beautiful country, she told . "You have a beautiful Island, and beautiful people.

"But a beautiful woman has to exercise, she has to stay healthy, it is hard work. It does not come easy.

"Beauty has to be maintained."