KINGSTON, Jamaica; February 21, 2018: Jamaica continues to benefit from a raft of high-profile visits by celebrities ranging from Pop music stars to a former U.S. President.

On the heels of the island in December copping the World’s Leading Wedding Destination award from the World Travel Awards held in Vietnam, Pop stars Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez are vacationing in Montego Bay for the wedding of Bieber’s father, Jeremy and new stepmom Chelsey Rebelo.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, who this weekend will receive his Caribbean Tourism Minister of the Year award from Caribbean Journal, pointed out that high profile visits to the island, “enable the destination to effectively promulgate it’s diverse offerings to specific and very important demographics while showcasing the island as a must do for a great vacation experience. We are undoubtedly a multi-faceted destination.”

Several international media entities have carried photographs of Bieber and Gomez at the Montego Bay wedding including TMZ, PEOPLE and E!, Billboard and US Weekly.

There visit follows that of Russian Tennis Star Maria Sharapova, who vacationed in and around Montego Bay, staying at the famed Round Hill Hotel and Villas. There, Sharapova spent 15 minutes on the tennis court with a guest as part of a charity effort. Another famous pop music celebrity, Shawn Mendez, vacationed in Portland last week, while singer Solange Knowles, sister of Pop star Beyoncé, vacationed earlier this month on the island.

Meanwhile, Billionaire Fashion Icon Ralph Lauren, who owns a vacation home on the outskirts of Montego Bay, spent several days on the island and was recently honoured by Hanover Charities at their yearly Sugar Cane Ball at Round Hill. Prime Minister Andrew Holness and Tourism Minister, Edmund Bartlett officially acknowledged Lauren’s love and philanthropic work on the island.

Senior Advisor and Strategist to Tourism Minister, Delano Seiveright noted that, “Jamaica, and in particular Montego Bay, is seeing an uptick in wealthy and celebrity tourists some of whom take to their social media platforms, with millions of young fans each, to publicise their vacation giving us incredible positive publicity. For Montego Bay in particular it is very good”

Highlighting a surge in celebrity and wealthy visitors, Chief Executive Officer of MBJ Airports, operators of Montego Bay’s Sangster International Airport, Rafael Echavarne recently noted that, “from December 23 to December 31 a total of 60 private jets were accommodated at the Airport with December 26^th recording the highest number with a total of 18 private jets accommodated, the place was absolutely full.”

Just late last month William ‘Bill’ Jefferson Clinton, the 42^nd President of the United States of America, vacationed in Montego Bay and its environs for a weekend spending on the golf course at Tryall Club. Among the high profile party was former Governor of the U.S. State of Virginia, Terry McAuliffe who also served as chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2001 to 2005, was co-chairman of President Bill Clinton's 1996 re-election campaign, and was chairman of Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett pointing to provisional data from the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) showing a roughly 7 percent increase in the number of stopover tourists for the month of January compared to the same month last year. A record 4.3 million combined stopover and cruise tourists visited Jamaica in 2017. This according to Bartlett represents a 12.1 per cent increase over arrivals in 2016.

“It is the first time that we brought more than 500,000 additional visitors and near US$500 million more in a single calendar year.” he noted.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; February 21, 2018: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett today (February 21, 2018) visited the New York Stock Exchange, Wall Street, to participate in a series of meetings and media engagements to promote Jamaica’s tourism product as an ideal investment market.  

The Minister disclosed that there has been a notable increase in activity emanating from Wall Street, which is influencing tourism growth in the Caribbean. He also shared that there is a growing interest globally to invest in Jamaica, because of the noted improvement in the country’s economy.

“My visit here is to further establish that connection and to continue to make the point that tourism investment is now moving away from the family structures and private equity and into the public space. This allows a larger group of people to be owners of the tourism industry through the stock markets and its activities. I therefore urge more Jamaicans to own tourism,” said Minister Bartlett.

Mr. Bartlett noted that the interest of the Wall Street in tourism should come as no surprise as the value of tourism globally is US $7.6 trillion. He also noted that the industry is now the second most important contributor to global GDP, representing some 10 percent with nearly 400 million employed to the sector. This means approximately 11 percent of employed persons globally are in the tourism industry.

“Tourism has come a long way in terms of being recognised as a global driver of economic activity, creator of good jobs and also the cause of transformation and economic development within small and medium countries. It is indeed one of the fastest growing economic activities in the world today,” said the Minister.

Minister Bartlett is currently visiting New York City to engage in a series of strategic meetings with tourism partners and members of the Diaspora.

He is accompanied newly appointed Director of Tourism, Donovan White and by Senior Advisor and Strategist in the Ministry of Tourism, Delano Seiveright. The team is expected to return to the island on February 23, 2018.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; February 20, 2018: Tourism Minister, Edmund Bartlett will visit New York City today (February 20, 2018) to engage in a series of strategic meetings with tourism partners and members of the Diaspora.

The meetings with stakeholders – such as tour operators, hotel representatives, select ‘Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, and Events (MICE)’ market executives and travel-trade media representatives – are in tandem with the Jamaica Tourist Board’s (JTB) marketing plan to increase visitor arrivals from the country’s leading markets across the globe. 

While in New York, Minister Bartlett will also speak at a luncheon hosted by the Jamaican American Chamber of Commerce (JACC) on Thursday February 22, 2018.

“I am looking forward to engaging with the Diaspora at such an important event which will benefit children in our homeland Jamaica. I am excited to share the progress our Ministry has been making and the exciting new projects we are working on to ensure the continued growth of the sector to benefit the people of Jamaica,” said Minister Bartlett.

The Chamber will use proceeds from this event to fund grants to Jamaican children in the areas of Education, Healthcare and Social and Economic Development.

The Minster will also participate in the Annual Awards Gala of The American Foundation for The University of West Indies (AFUWI) on Thursday 22 February, 2018.  This year the event will honour Jamaican Businessman Patrick Hylton; American-Guyanese actress CCH Pounder; Jamaican writer Marlon James; Brooklyn-born actress and radio host Angela Yee; Antiguan-American Designer June Ambrose; and Grenadian-American Publicist Yvette Noel Schure.

“The Gala will be another great opportunity for me to engage with the Diaspora. I will be making a presentation to them on the plans we have to establish a Global Resilience Centre in Jamaica, which will help to prepare our vulnerable sector for the possible effects, of not only seismic activity, but also about cybercrime and economic shocks,” said the Minister.

The resilience centre, which has been fully endorsed by the United Nations World Tourism Organization and the World Travel and Tourism Council, will assist destination preparedness, management and recovery from disruptions and/or crises that impact tourism and threaten economies and livelihoods globally.

It will also provide communication, marketing and branding assistance to destinations hit by disruptions/disasters towards rapid recovery; provide business intelligence and data analytics information to destinations; and monitor the recovery efforts of countries affected by a crisis.

The AFUWI Annual Awards Gala will take place at The Pierre hotel in New York City and is organised with the aim of bringing together alumni and other partners of The University of the West Indies. The Gala will raise funds for scholarships as well as honour the achievements of notable individuals from the USA and the Caribbean. 

The Minister is expected to return to the island on February 23, 2018. 

KINGSTON, Jamaica; February 16, 2018:  Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett says a tourism certification programme for secondary students will officially be launched, with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information on the 15th of March.

The joint initiative will provide certification from the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI) in their Hospitality and Tourism Management Program (HTMP) to students in grades 10, 11, 12 and 13. 

The Minister made the announcement during a special welcome meeting for the newly appointed Director of Tourism, Mr. Donovan White, at the Jamaica Tourist Board’s New Kingston office on February 16, 2018.

“This certification programme will close the loop in terms of our strategy to build the human capital and to create professionalism within the industry. High school students can use this certification as the first step, before going to HEART or universities of their choice,” explained the Minister.

He also shared that it would then be recommended for students to apply to the Jamaica Centre for Tourism Innovation (JCTI), an assessment institution driven by the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo), which offers AHLEI world-class training and certification over a three-month period.

“Once you have completed your training at the tertiary level, then you can come to us at the JCTI for certification.  Also, if you didn’t go to any formal institution but you have competence in different tourism-related fields, like as a sous-chef de cuisine or a supervisor in Food and Beverage, you can come to the JCTI and get certified. So you also are able to move up in your profession,” said the Minister.

The JCTI and high school certification programme, forms part of the Ministry of Tourism’s Human Capital Development Plan, and will facilitate the certification of Jamaicans working in tourism, and better prepare them to serve the sector.

The pilot programme for the certification programme for secondary students will begin this summer, when facilitators will be trained. The official roll-out of the programme in schools should begin in the Christmas term.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; February 08, 2018: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett has announced that the much-anticipated Tourism Speed Networking Event, slated for March 14, 2018, at the Hilton Rose Hall Hotel & Spa in Montego Bay, has been rescheduled.

The event will now be hosted at the Montego Bay Convention Centre on March 15, 2018.

The Ministry of Tourism’s Tourism Linkages Network continues to encourage local manufacturers and service providers to register to participate in the fifth staging of the Tourism Linkages Speed Networking Event.

Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett shared that the highly-successful event, is one of the innovative initiatives his Ministry will continue to pursue, in an effort to create opportunities for fruitful partnerships with the private sector, to develop the tourism sector in a way that will benefit all Jamaicans.

“The outcomes of the past four Speed Networking sessions have been very encouraging. Last year in particular, we had a total of 172 representatives from 98 supplier companies and 79 buyer representatives from 55 tourism entities. A snapshot survey of participants over the years showed that 97 percent had their intended objectives realized and had strong business leads generated from their participation,” said Minister Bartlett.

The speed networking event is currently open to businesses who offer a wide range of goods and services. Participants in the past included suppliers of: craft, toiletries and guest amenities, chemicals and cleaning products, cosmetic and spa products, furniture, bedding, food and beverage, uniforms, printing and packaging, training, ICT goods and services, electrical services, entertainment services, meat and fresh produce.

It is being hosted by the Tourism Linkages Network in partnership with the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA), the Jamaica Manufacturers’ Association (JMA), Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) and other entities.

Interested participants are being encouraged to register with the Jamaica Manufacturer’s Association before February 23, 2018. They may be contacted at 922-8880/3 or via e-mail at jma@jma.com.jm.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; February 2, 2018: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett says Jamaica will host the next Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association's (CHTA) annual Caribbean Travel Marketplace (CTM), scheduled for the first quarter of 2019.

The Caribbean Travel Marketplace is the largest and most prominent tourism marketing event in the Caribbean. It serves as an important platform to enhance exchanges between tourism suppliers from around the world.

Minister Bartlett made the announcement following a successful bid to CHTA’s CEO Frank Comito in San Juan, Puerto Rico earlier this week.

“I am very pleased to announce that Jamaica will once again play host to an important tourism event, which will see thousands of delegates, stakeholders and investors in attendance from across the region. It is an incredible achievement for our country and I am certain we will reap significant benefits,” said Minister Bartlett.

The CTM gives thousands of suppliers the opportunity to meet face-to-face with wholesalers from the Caribbean over the course of two days. It showcases hotels, tourist boards, destination management companies, tour operators, airlines among others related to the travel industry.

While in Puerto Rico, the Minister also participated in a press conference where he gave an update on the Global Resilience Centre, which should be situated at the University of the West Indies, Mona — with oversight from United Nations World Tourism Organization, the Caribbean Tourism Organization, the World Travel & Tourism Council and CHTA.

The Centre, which was recently endorsed by the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association, will be designed to assist affected states to combat disruptive events and strengthen capacity to predict and manage crises. It will also include a Sustainable Tourism Observatory, which will assist preparedness, management and recovery of crises which impact tourism and threaten economies and livelihoods.

Minister Bartlett also announced plans to host another international conference in Montego Bay, with special focus on Small and Medium Tourism Enterprises in January, 2019.

The Minister is accompanied by Executive Director of the Tourism Product Development Company, Dr. Andrew Spencer in San Juan, Puerto Rico.  He is expected to return to the island on February 03, 2017.

KINGSTON, JAMAICA; January 30, 2018:  Mr. Donovan White has been selected to fill the position of Director of Tourism of the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), after an extensive local and international search. His appointment has been announced by Minister of Tourism, the Honourable Edmund Bartlett. 

Mr. White, a Jamaican national, whose term as head of the country’s tourism marketing agency, will commence officially on February 15, 2018, brings with him many years of marketing and business development experience. He served recently as Vice President of Cable & Wireless Business, Jamaica, where he was responsible for year over year revenue growth of 29 percent and 12 percent in 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 respectively.

Prior to that, Mr. White served as Vice President, Marketing, Sales & Media Services at Columbus Communications Jamaica Limited (FLOW), leading commercial teams to deliver revenue growth in 2013 and 2014. During that period, he was responsible for delivering a 25 percent year over year growth in sales from trade.

Mr. White has also held the positions of General Manager of Caledonia Outdoor Advertising Limited, where he helped to reduce the cost of operations by 25 percent and grow revenues by 15 percent and Digicel Group Limited, working as Marketing Director for Jamaica, Guyana and the Northern OECS, managing the execution of some of the largest and most successful brand and tactical campaigns.

He also served as Vice President, Sales & Marketing, CVM Communications Group Limited, growing sales output for four consecutive years between 1998 and 2001.

With a solid background in marketing, digital media and business development, the Director-designate is expected to build upon the past successes of the Jamaica Tourist Board, help the JTB expand its global reach and continue to forge a strong partnership with the private sector. 

“We are pleased with Mr. White’s appointment,” said the Hon. Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism.  “He brings a solid business acumen and marketing savvy to the Jamaica Tourist Board, having developed, managed and executed vertically integrated marketing and branding strategies for a range of industry sectors including media, telecoms, advertising and technology. As a member of Jamaica’s tourism team, I am confident that Mr. White’s experience will assist the JTB to continue on its current path of delivering increased tourism results through innovative public and private sector partnerships.” 

In commenting on Mr. White’s appointment, Mr. John Lynch, Chairman of the Jamaica Tourist Board noted, “Donovan brings the right experience and the respect of the marketing and business sectors to this important position.  In his capacity as Director of Tourism, he will lead the JTB as Jamaica’s tourist industry continues to grow in a highly globalized and technology driven world.” 

Mr. Donnie Dawson currently serving as Interim Director will continue in that role until Mr. White assumes office.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; January 25, 2018:   Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett says, newly released figures from the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) for December 2017, highlight that Jamaica’s tourism product continues to see record-breaking growth in visitor arrivals.

In December 2017, Cruise Passenger Arrivals grew by 14 per cent and stop-over arrivals were also up 9.3 per cent, when compared to the same period in 2016.

“We have been placing a lot of focus on the development and improvement of our cruise industry. I am very proud to see the results of our efforts. I am especially pleased that the total cruise arrivals included arrivals from less popular ports – Kingston and Port Antonio. Port Antonio welcomed 984 passengers and Kingston welcomed 4,162 visitors,” said Minister Bartlett.

According to the data, Jamaica welcomed a total of 208,212 passengers from 74 cruise ship calls.  Significant increases were seen from Falmouth Port, which is up 17.6 per cent, with 94,090 passengers from 21 cruise ship calls. Ocho Rios port also saw an increase of 21.6 per cent, with 56,211 passengers from 20 cruise ship calls.

Stop-over arrivals are also up by 9.3 per cent, with another record total of 251,800 arrivals for December 2017, when compared to the same period in 2016.

“Our highest increase for December came from the Latin American market, which is up by 27 percent with a total of 3,001 arrivals. However, we continue to consistently perform from our key markets – USA and Europe,” said the Minister.

He added that USA is up 9.4 per cent, with 156,660 arrivals – with the highest increase seen from the Southern States.   The country also welcomed 33,662 stop-over visitors from Europe, which represents an increase of 9 per cent.

“When first re-elected as Tourism Minister, I noticed a significant decrease in the Canadian market. We had to place special strategies in place to ensure that this was quickly addressed.  I am proud to say that our rescue package has proved successful and our latest figures show that Canada is up 10.5 per cent,” said the Minister. 

KINGSTON, Jamaica; January 19, 2017: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett says that the Government of Jamaica has been in discussions with a number of investors to resuscitate the railway programme to Appleton Estate, which he hopes will result in an increase of tourists visiting the South Coast of the island. The project has a completion date of 2020. 

Speaking at the launch of the newly opened Joy Spence Appleton Rum Estate Tour on January 18, 2017, the Minister said that, “the rail is going to be a reality. The last discussion I had, before I went to my meetings in Spain last week, was with the team of entrepreneurs who are putting the dollars together.”

“There is a local group who were able to tell me that $40 million is on the table now to start the first leg of the programme, which will take us to Catadupa and the second leg into Appleton .The Prime Minister, Minister of Transport and I are excited about coordinating with them to start the first phase of the tracks being put back and the system being active,” he continued.  

The Minister also disclosed that commitments have also been made to improve the roadway to the iconic Appleton Rum Estate, which recently received a US$7.2 million upgrade to its facilities.

“The Prime Minister, who is also a great supporter of this experience, wanted me to share that he is personally committed to ensuring that the transportation arrangements to enable seamless flow of visitors into this destination is in place. The road improvement programme is on the cards for this fiscal year to come and the Tourism Enhancement Fund will provide assistance with that,” he said.

The reopening of the railway and improved roadways, in conjunction with the Appleton Rum Tour, is expected to improve community tourism along the route and provide increased economic opportunities for stakeholders.

As the island’s oldest distillery, Appleton Estate is already the biggest tourist attraction on the south coast, bringing in tens of thousands of visitors a year.  With the new upgrade more than 100,000 visitors are expected to visit the home of Appleton to experience how the world-leading premium rums are produced.

“I am committed to working with you at Appleton to move the projected 100,000 visitors to 250,000 by 2020.  Next week I am going to be talking to some partners in Miami, who I know will have an interest in this particular experience,” said the Minister.