‘Internet of Things’ Transforming Travel Experiences at Jamaica’s Air- and Seaports

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for MBJ Airports Limited, Shane Munroe, says the entity is looking to further enhance the travel experience at Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay by introducing self-service kiosks, electronic gates (e-gates) and biometrics for departing passengers.

He made the disclosure during his presentation on the topic ‘Utilising the Internet of Things (IoT) for Enhanced Service Delivery’ on Monday’s (February 17) opening day of the Global Tourism Resilience Conference 2025, being held at Princess Hotel in Green Island, Hanover.

IoT represents a network of physical objects that are implanted with sensors, aggregators software and other technologies for connecting and exchanging data.

These devices are used within the tourism sector to improve guest experience, improve operational efficiency, reduce cost and improve profitability.

Mr. Munroe, who welcomed the current use of IoT devices, particularly e-gates at the airport, noted that the processing time through immigrations for incoming travellers has reduced significantly during the peak operating hours between 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.

Consequently, he is hopeful that e-gates can be replicated for departing passengers, in collaboration with the Government and the Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA).

“Our friends at PICA and the Government, of course, have biometrics on arrival. It is an experience that is probably not advertised enough where, regardless of your nationality, you can use these types of devices on arrival and be able to digitally fill out a form, use a kiosk, use an e-gate and exit immigration even without interacting with a physical officer,” Mr. Munroe stated.

“But that is something that we are also taking to the departures journey… to implement biometrics on the departures journey. The ability for them to go through security using e-gates, again, having their biometric identity tied to their travel information, and then to be able to board their flights. These are things we are actively working on [and] implementing this year for the passenger to be able to use their identity, and for these devices to be what verifies their travel credentials and their identity,” the CEO added.

He said these mechanisms will also include a feedback section so passengers can share their experience, which will be used to enhance service delivery.

IoT devices have also been useful in improving cruise-ship passengers’ experiences, with the information gathered from the ‘Happy or Not’ machines placed at the ports.

Executive Director of Jamaica Vacations Limited (JamVac), Joy Roberts, told the audience at the conference that with the machines’ implementation, JamVac’s satisfaction rate has increased from 80 to 95 per cent.

Using data garnered on Saturday, February 15 from the Ocho Rios Port in St Ann, Ms. Roberts was able to depict the use of IoT devices and how JamVac has used the data to predict passengers’ needs and react quickly to issues that may arise.

“On this day, our satisfaction rate was at 95 per cent. However, we do have people who press the red button. What we have been doing is, once a passenger presses the red button, we pull them out of the line and we say, ‘what happened today?’ and they say, ‘we had a challenge with a bus driver’. We pull them aside [and], [at the] same time, we get the bus driver; sometimes we get monies returned to them, sometimes we get an apology. Whatever it is, we work together with the port authority and we solve the matter before the passenger goes on board,” Ms. Roberts said.

She added that handling the matter before the passenger returns to the cruise ship is crucial, as it could affect the perception of brand Jamaica.

“Once they go onboard the cruise ship, they have to fill out a survey. Anything negative about Jamaica is going to go against the destination, So it is very important that we deal with it before they get on the ship. Sometimes by the time they get on the ship, they would have gotten an email from, not only the cruise manager, but also from me,” Ms. Roberts explained.
Global Tourism Resilience Conference 2025 is being held under the theme ‘Building Tourism Resilience Through Digital Transformation’.

The three-day event concludes on Wednesday, February 19.