Visitor Arrivals to Increase as UK Market Reopens
By: , October 11, 2021
Photo: Okoye Henry
Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, speaking at a tablet and laptop handover ceremony at the Holiday Inn Resort and Spa in St. James on Friday (October 8).The Full Story
Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says the world’s largest travel tourism company, TUI, is to facilitate the travel of some 2,000 passengers from the UK and surrounding region to Jamaica this October.
He said this recent development comes after the UK’s announcement to lift the travel advisory against all non-essential travel to Jamaica based on a current assessment of risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Finally, Jamaica is now in the green, and so from taking Jamaica from the list of restricted countries to visit, it means that next weekend one company named TUI is going to start with 2,000 passengers into the country. So, we will be looking at something close to 100,000 room nights because of this one entity coming,” Mr. Bartlett stated.
He was speaking to journalists at a tablet and laptop handover ceremony at the Holiday Inn Resort and Spa in St. James on Friday (October 8).
The Minister indicated that the lift of travel advisory is a welcome relief, as the UK and Europe are among Jamaica’s largest tourism contributors. He said the advisory had even threatened plans for the resumption of homeporting for the AIDA Cruises in Montego Bay for November.
“Now that it is released, we are comforted by the fact that AIDA Cruises will resume homeporting in Montego Bay,” Mr. Bartlett outlined.
“Homeporting means supply-chain arrangements and Montego Bay entrepreneurs will have a chance to supply again on the needs of those cruise ships coming. Then the hotels will benefit from the overnight stay of people who come in and, of course, airport with the traffic,” he added.
In the meantime, Mr. Bartlett pointed out that Jamaica’s tourism sector is now poised to enjoy some 82 per cent of 2019’s traffic coming out of Canada.
“Also, out of the US, Expedia is telling us that we are pacing second only to Mexico in the world, and Southwest and American Airlines are all similarly referencing Jamaica among the higher-pacing destinations for the winter,” he stated.