Tourism Ministry Working on Deal to Bring More Visitors to the Island

The Tourism Ministry is working on a deal with German-based tour operator, TUI Travel, which will bring thousands of European visitors to the island over the next three years.
Portfolio Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, said that the Ministry is expected to sign-off on the agreement in January 2010.
According to Mr. Bartlett, the partnership will not only secure a determined number of visitors annually over the next three years, but the country will benefit “from the synergies that a relationship with a partner as large and important in the global tourism landscape, as TUI, offers. TUI’s presence is not only in Europe, it is in North America, it’s all over the world”.
He was addressing a media briefing at the Round Hill Hotel in Hanover on Wednesday evening (December 9).Minister Bartlett said that the partnership with TUI will also present other positive spinoffs in terms of attracting other large tour operators to Jamaica.
“Jamaica will then be able to cover the four corners of the earth, because TUI and its connections will give us connectivity out of Europe, Asia and elsewhere, and the others that come will fill in the gaps because we are already well connected in North America,” he stated.
TUI Travel is a leading international leisure travel group, operating in approximately 180 countries worldwide and serves more than 30 million customers in over 25 source markets.
With a capital base of approximately US$4 billion, the company operates a pan-European airline consisting of about 155 aircraft.
The letter of intent that will create the framework for the agreement with TUI is being finalised, with a signing scheduled for the end of January.