Janet Silvera/Gleaner Writer

Travel advisers and tourism stakeholders at the Sandals Back to Jamaica held at Sandal’s Dunn’s River in Ocho Rios, St Ann, yesterday.
December 9, 2025 by Janet Silvera

Room inventory surges back

WESTERN BUREAU: Jamaica’s Director of Tourism Donovan White has assured more than 250 visiting travel advisers that the country’s tourism recovery is accelerating faster than anticipated, revealing…
Shane Munroe, CEO, MBJ Airports Limited, addressing travel advisers and other tourism stakeholders at the Sandals ‘Back to Jamaica’ Town Hall at Sandals Dunn’s River in St Ann on Friday.
December 9, 2025 by Janet Silvera

New flights, 2026 expansion underscore strong airlift to Jamaica, says MBJ CEO

WESTERN BUREAU: Jamaica is set to welcome a wave of new international flights this winter and into 2026, a clear signal that global confidence in the island’s tourism product remains strong despite…
Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Jamaica, Wang Jinfeng (second right), greets crew members of the ‘Ark Silk Road; medical ship at the Montego Bay Cruise Ship Terminal on Thursday.
December 9, 2025 by Janet Silvera

Chinese medical ship a lifeline, says Fray

WESTERN BUREAU: Western Jamaica’s health sector has received a critical boost with the arrival of China’s Navy hospital ship Ark Silk Road, which began a three-day medical mission in Montego Bay, St…
Dr Leahcim Semaj shares lens time with Round Hill Hotel and Villas managing director, Josef Fortsmayr, during one of his mindspa workshops for staff at the Montego Bay resort.
December 9, 2025 by Janet Silvera

Round Hill rebuilds staff ahead of reopening

WESTERN BUREAU: Five weeks after Hurricane Melissa tore through western Jamaica, Round Hill Hotel and Villas is preparing to reopen its doors, but not before first rebuilding something far more…
Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett (centre) is flkanked by (from left) senior executives of the S Hotel Montego Bay, Radu Mot, Romie Morris, Ann-Marie Goffe-Pryce and Andres Cope. In the back is Christopher Jarrett, president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist
December 9, 2025 by Janet Silvera

MoBay gears up for winter season’s start in days

WESTERN BUREAU: With the winter tourist season set to open on December 15, Montego Bay’s major resorts and attractions are accelerating their final recovery efforts following Hurricane Melissa. Among…
TUI UK passengers on arrival into the arrivals hall just outside customs at the Sangster International Airport earlier this month. They were among the first UK passengers to arrive on a charter flight from the UK since the passage of Hurricane Melissa.
December 9, 2025 by Janet Silvera

TUI resumes UK charter flights after Melissa

WESTERN BUREAU: Jamaica’s arrival numbers remain sharply down three weeks after Hurricane Melissa battered the island, leaving thousands of hotel rooms offline until well into 2026. But on Monday, a…
Jevaughn leads his wife, Jordine, down the stairs of their wedding venue.
December 9, 2025 by Janet Silvera

A love long-nurtured: The Gaynors tie the knot

WESTERN BUREAU: Some love stories rush, but this one ripened slowly. Years of easy friendship blossomed into a deep, unexpected devotion, culminating in a tender seaside celebration where Jordine…
Roderick ‘Latty’ Brissett.
December 9, 2025 by Janet Silvera

‘Latty survived the hurricane, but not the mud’

On his 68th birthday, Roderick ‘Latty’ Brissett felt only a little feverish. By the fourth day, the man who seldom got sick slipped away, taken by leptospirosis after the storm. Brissett ran every…
MegaMart Montego Bay severely damaged by floods caused by Hurricane Melissa
December 9, 2025 by Janet Silvera

MEGA BLOW

WESTERN BUREAU: MegaMart Wholesale Club is to permanenty close its largest store – located in Montego Bay, St James – after suffering catastrophic flood damage during the passage of Hurricane Melissa.…