KINGSTON, Jamaica – Jamaica, which is forecasting that 4.58 million visitors will visit the country this year with potential earnings of US$4.38 billion, has embarked on a multi-city marketing blitz in the United States.
Tourism Minister Ed Bartlett (File Photo)Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett is leading the initiative that includes several meetings with airline partners and key interviews with top media houses in New York, Chicago and Dallas.
“It is critical that we maintain strong relationships with our tourism partners in the United States which is our largest source market brining in 74 per cent of our arrivals. It is through these strong relationships we have been able to experience continued growth to be four per cent up over 2023,” said Bartlett.
The multi city marketing blitz begins in New York with a series of key media interviews and participation at the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) Week, where Bartlett will be among panelists at the “Minister’s Forum (Leveraging Artificial Intelligence)” discussion.
Under the banner of CTO’s 35th anniversary theme, “Connecting the Globe, Celebrating Diversity”, Caribbean Week 2024 will showcase a dynamic lineup of events and business meetings.
Bartlett will also hold meetings with senior executives from major airline operators, Jetblue, Delta and United.
“We are using the opportunity to reengage our partners and promote the phenomenal growth of our tourism sector. We never take for granted the hard work of our tourism stakeholders and workers in the sector who have contributed to Jamaica’s tourism success.
“Through this US engagement we will drive even more conversations around strengthening our partnerships for further growth,” said Bartlett.
Director of Tourism, Donovan White, says the US remains a key source market for Jamaica “and as such it is critical that we consistently engage with our critical stakeholders there to find ways to improve our outcomes”.
Last year, Jamaica set a record with more than four million visitors and during the first four months of this year, the island has welcomed more than two million arrivals.
