The arrival of the country’s one-millionth stopover visitor is a signal of the strength of the country’s tourism recovery and how the industry continues to rebound rapidly from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The arrival figures from the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) signal that the sector is proving its resilience and a return to pre-pandemic performance is on the horizon. In the mid of June, Jamaica surpassed the one million-visitor mark for this year.
The island is continuing its efforts to achieve their 2022 projections, which is a of total visitor arrivals of 3.2 million and total revenue of US$3.3 billion.
Honourable Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism of Jamaica, addressed a function at the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay to celebrate the milestone of the visitor figures.
“This moment is a testament to the confidence that the market shows in Jamaica as well as the strength, resilience and enduring appeal of Jamaica’s tourism product as we build back stronger,” said Minister Bartlett. “It is a testimony to the hard work of our tourism workers and the success of the Jamaica Cares programme, which has prioritised the health and safety of Jamaican citizens and visitors,” he added.
Jamaica is already witnessing excellent signs of recovery as the tourism industry continues to drive the island’s post-COVID-19 economic recovery. The Tourism Director, Donovan White, said that “Jamaica has been seeing a steadily increasing growth in stopover arrivals this year. The summer bookings are pacing ahead of 2019 (pre-pandemic), to be the strongest summer we have ever experienced”.
Minister Bartlett further added, “It is wonderful to see more than one million guests already in this year of our 60th anniversary, with the bulk of arrivals having accrued in just the past four months, and the expectation that we will welcome the next million stopovers in the next four months. We encourage everyone to explore the island, connect with our people and learn about our culture so they will want to come back to Jamaica again and again.”
Tourism arrivals for 2023 are projected to reach 3.7 million and $3.5 billion in earnings, with 2024 expected to surpass 2019 levels with 4.2 million visitors and $4 billion in revenue.
