Bartlett anticipates strong winter tourist season
Published:Wednesday | December 15, 2021 | 9:43 AM
Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett says data indicates that Jamaica is set to have a strong Winter Tourist Season, with a steady inflow of tourists.
The season starts today.
Bartlett said that it is anticipated that a strong season should enable the destination to end 2021 with an excellent showing of 1.6 million visitors and over US$2 billion in earnings.
“I am delighted to announce that our research shows that Jamaica will have a strong and lucrative Winter Tourist Season. I am extremely grateful that despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, our tourism industry is showing rapid signs of recovery. Hotels and attractions have reopened, most of our tourism workers are back on the job, and visitor arrivals continue to surge,” said Bartlett in a statement.
The season should see similar occupancy levels to 2019 (before the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the island), with the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) projecting an average of 65 per cent occupancy in hotels across the island.
Based on recent data, the demand for Jamaica is also 38 per cent of 2019, against the world demand of 24 per cent, said Bartlett.
According to data secured via GDS – the platform travel agents use to book travel – Jamaica is currently at 61 per cent of 2019 levels compared to 28 per cent globally, for international air passengers, the tourism minister added.
“This turnaround would not be possible without the united approach taken by our committed tourism stakeholders, both within the public and private sectors, who have worked tirelessly to get tourism back on track. I wish to express my sincere appreciation to our dedicated frontline workers, hoteliers, ground transportation providers, craft vendors, attractions and airport workers, and the many others who have contributed to tourism's recovery,” he said.
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