They are clearly a couple who have been regular visitors, enjoy Bermuda and want to come here. Yet they say they will not be returning to Bermuda or recommending Bermuda to their friends because the airfares are simply too high. The writer said, "You can talk and write all you want about new approaches to tourism, new themes, new slogans, new consultants, new managing directors etc. etc. etc. When getting to your Island is more expensive than flights to Paris, London, Hawaii. San Francisco, Las Vegas etc. tourists are going to go elsewhere - it's as simple as that!'' This unsolicited letter written over the names of a couple who are clearly friendly toward Bermuda, certainly made us stop and think. It should do the same for most Bermudians. Maybe the problems in tourism do not start in the service areas, or the high hotel prices, or the facilities offered. Maybe they start when people are planning their holiday and buying their tickets.

If a travel agent tells a client that the fare to Paris is no more expensive than the fare to Bermuda, hotel rates are about the same and, yes, Paris is very expensive but so is Bermuda, then there must be a huge temptation to jet off to the glamour of Paris. "We just went to Paris for a week.'' Wow! Those of us who have relatives, especially our children, living in the United States know how often they complain about the cost of coming home. We also know how expensive it is to bring them home.

Then too we know that no matter how hard we try to work out the lowest fares there always seems to be a person who gets a better deal. If you read the ads in the East Coast papers it sometimes seems that it is almost as cheap to buy a package which includes air fare and hotel than deal simply with paying the air fare.

Some of this indicates the chaos in the airline industry since deregulation but some of it makes us wonder if Bermuda and Bermudians are being ripped-off.

We have never heard a sensible explanation from the airlines about exactly why fares to Bermuda are so high. We probably never will.

Part of the problem seems to us to be the fact that the airlines have carved up the US destinations among themselves and there is no longer competition on specific routes. You take Boston. I'll take Atlanta. Who gets Newark? We know that the Minister and Ministry of Tourism are working hard on alternatives, new ideas and charters. We know they have been making their views very plain to the airlines.

We think the airlines owe Bermuda a sensible explanation. The fares are high.

On paper they appear discriminatory. It seems clear they are damaging Bermuda's tourism.