Jamaica Continues To See Tourism Growth

Jamaica is continuing to see robust growth, with the island’s Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett reporting that since January of this year, Jamaica has welcomed 1.5 million visitors and its provisional gross earnings have exceeded US$1.6 billion for the same period (from Jan. 1 to May 10, 2023).

Minister Bartlett made the announcement on the heels of the 41st Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s (CHTA) Caribbean Travel Marketplace in Barbados, where he received the President’s Award for Caribbean Excellence in Tourism. The tourism minister shared that the current year-to-date figures revealed that Destination Jamaica hit this target ahead of projections.

Said Minister Bartlett: “Between Jan. 1, 2023 and May 10, we received 1,586,303 total visitors, stopover and cruise, earning US$1.69 billion, putting our destination on par with 2019 record figures. We have seen steady growth in our arrivals and continued investment in the tourism sector, which is a tremendous achievement.”

He also stressed that strategic investments and resilience building were key areas of focus in sustaining the strong recovery of the tourism sector. He further cited intensified marketing efforts, increased room capacity and expanded airlift connectivity as critical drivers behind the boom in tourist arrivals.

Minister Bartlett stated: “To keep this growth on an upward trajectory, we continue to secure new air service with the addition of new routes by prestigious carriers such as American Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Spirit Airlines, Arajet, and Edelweiss Airlines. Plus, we are expanding and modernizing Sangster International Airport and have approximately 8,000 new hotel rooms slated for construction over the next two to five years.”

Minister Bartlett highlighted that the Ministry of Tourism’s Blue Ocean Strategy as well as its Destination Assurance Framework and Strategy continue to influence the development of a more sustainable, resilient and diverse tourism product.

Said Minister Bartlett: “Jamaica is leveraging key pillars for tourism that showcase the destination’s unique culture and heritage while simultaneously addressing the desire of today’s traveller to experience more than just sun, sea and sand. We need to carefully manage the industry through resilience building, so it can continually adapt to issues that may arise and put plans in place to protect it from potential future shocks.”