Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says tourism remains a pivotal driver of economic growth and prosperity for Jamaica, as it continues to generate increased visitor arrivals and earnings. Addressing diplomats during a Diplomatic Corps Ministerial briefing at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston on February 8, Mr. Bartlett noted that the sector performed very well based on data for...

The Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo) has been raising the standards of customer service within the industry by identifying, promoting and rewarding excellence in this area. This thrust is being implemented through the National Tourism Service Excellence Programme (NTSEP) which aims to recognise and reward individuals and organisations exemplifying service excellence in the sector. The NTSEP, which was established in...

Chairman of Jamaica’s National Cruise Council (NCC), Michael Belnavis, says the problem of visitor harassment has been seriously curtailed in most of the resort towns where visitors can now freely walk the streets. According to Mr. Belnavis, the Courtesy Corps, a security unit formerly known as the Resort Patrol, and which falls under the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo), must...

The Government is committed to the long-term sustainable development of tourism as it is expected to earn approximately US$2.835 billion, with total visitor arrivals of 4.188 million this year. Delivering the 2017-18 Throne Speech in Parliament on February 9, Governor-General, His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen, said tourism is one of the main drivers of economic growth in...

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says the series of meetings the Government has been having with strategic tourism partners in the cruise and stopover sectors have been bearing fruit. He noted that based on the evidence, cruise shipping and stopover arrivals continue to show record numbers, putting the Ministry ahead of its quest to have five million visitors in...

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says Jamaica’s hosting of the six largest ships in the world is proof that the island is poised to become the region’s number one cruise destination. Mr. Bartlett, who recently returned from a five-day trip to Nassau, Bahamas, where he attended an important meeting of the Caribbean Tourism Organization’s (CTO) Council of Tourism Ministers...

President of Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO), Diane Edwards, says the country’s medical talent pool is at a stage where a successful launch into the health and wellness tourism market can be done.  Addressing the launch of the Zierlich International Dialysis Centre at the GWest Medical Complex in Montego Bay, St. James on February 2, Ms. Edwards said that currently, Jamaica...