Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says the Government is monitoring industry developments in relation to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in key visitor source markets. He advised that contact is being maintained with overseas partners as part of efforts to keep abreast of the extent of the outbreak and how this could impact bookings and visitor arrivals. “As it stands now,...

Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says industry projections for Fiscal Year 2020/21 have been revised in light of the threat posed by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). “Current global situations require for us to review some of our projected out-turns as well as our market strategy and, perhaps, to cautiously examine where and how we apply the budgetary arrangements with regards...

A Chocolate Festival will soon be added to the list of festivals to be marketed as part of Jamaica’s tourism product. The disclosure was made by Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, in an interview with JIS News at the second staging of the Jamaica Rum Festival on Saturday (February 29) at Hope Gardens in Kingston. According to Minister Bartlett,...

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, wants the annual Jamaica Rum Festival to be expanded to the tourism Mecca of Montego Bay. Speaking to JIS News at the second staging of the event at Hope Gardens on Saturday (February 29), the Minister noted that “festivals are a big part of what brings people to a destination” and as such, he...

Some 8,000 tourism workers who do not have formal training are being targeted by the Government for certification over the next two years. Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, made the disclosure at a sensitisation session on the tourism workers’ pension scheme at the Hotel Tim Bamboo in Port Antonio on Thursday (February 27). He said that the certifying initiative...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, and Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, on Friday (February 28), broke ground for a US$1 billion multi-resort development - Sugarcane Bay Jamaica - in Llandovery, St. Ann. The project is being executed by Karisma Hotels and Resorts on a 226-acre property that will add approximately 4,700 new rooms in the tourism sector. The...

The Marella Discovery 2 cruise ship made its second call to Port Royal on Monday (February 24), carrying some 1,800 visitors to Kingston. The cruise ship created history on January 20, when it was the first to dock at the newly opened cruise port constructed by the Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ). The passengers, on disembarking, were welcomed with cultural...