Jamaica is currently experiencing fastest travel and tourism recoveries in the world. Global GDS have found that the searches and demand for the destination were running 50 per cent ahead of the global average and travel agents led bookings and searches doubling the global average.
The briefing was given by Tom Starr, Vice President, and Alex Rayner, Director of Amadeus at the World Travel Market in London. Amadeus’ technology and solutions serves as a backbone and powers the global travel industry including airlines, airports, hotels and railways, search engines, travel agencies and tour operations.
“Jamaica has been doing the right things in the marketplace and the airlines and tour partners are responding in confidence. We also note that average room night stays are longer, and airlines are putting on more capacity to meet the demand. This is very good news for Jamaica, and in many places the news is just not good,” noted Rayner.
Jamaican Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett led a high-level team from the Ministry of Tourism and the Jamaica Tourist Board in the World Travel Market. Bartlett was joined by John Lynch, Chairman of the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB); Director of Tourism, Donovan White; Delano Seiveright, Senior Advisor & Strategist in the Tourism Ministry of Jamaica and Elizabeth Fox, JTB Regional Director of the UK and Northern Europe.
“The Ministry and the JTB have been working around the clock in line with Minister Bartlett’s aggressive push to bring back our numbers and the tourism industry back on track in record time. We have maintained, even in the down times, continuous and relentless contact with our many partners to ensure that we can turn things around as quickly as possible. The work is arduous but absolutely needed and we are seeing the fruits. Nonetheless, we remain cautiously optimistic and won’t take our eye off the ball,” said White.
Jamaica will this month start receiving at least 16 flights per week from the United Kingdom, bringing the island back to approximately 100 per cent airline seat capacity as the nation’s tourism numbers rebound.
Bartlett also led engagements and interactions at the World Expo 2020 Dubai, which will result in the opening up of tourism and investment opportunities for Jamaica.
