Investment Boom

Foreign Investments

•          The industry continued to attract significant investor interest from leading global hotel brands, with the out-turn for Foreign Direct Investments for the year poised to climb to a record US$470 million, up from US$100 million.

The new state-of-the-art water park at RIU Ocho Rios.

More Rooms, Enhanced Attractions

Hotel Rooms

•          Some 1,004 new or refurbished rooms were added to Jamaica’s stock:

•          R Hotel in Kingston – 58

•          AC Marriott in Kingston – 220

•          S Hotel in Montego Bay – 124

•          Half Moon Hotel in Montego Bay – 57

•          Ocean Coral Spring by H10 Hotels in Trelawny – 500

•          Riu Ocho Rios – 45  Artisan Village

Beach Development

•          Ground was broken for the development of the $1.3 billion state-of-the-art Closed Harbour Beach Park in Montego Bay.

•          The Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) has contributed $700 million towards funding this major 16-acre development, being undertaken in partnership with the Urban Development Corporation (UDC).

‘Carnival in Jamaica’

•          Last year’s carnival saw a record 8.4 per cent increase in the number of visitors participating, as some 50,000 revellers took to the streets of Kingston.

Housing

•          Ground was broken to construct more than 754 affordable housing units in the Rhyne Park area of St. James for tourism workers. The project is a joint venture between the Housing Agency of Jamaica (HAJ) and the China-based firm, Henan Fifth Construction Group. 

Global Impact UNWTO Commission

•          Jamaica was elected Chair of the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) Regional Commission for the Americas for the 2019-2021 biennium.

International Awards

•          Minister Bartlett copped the inaugural Chairman’s Award for Global Tourism Innovation.

•          The Jamaica Tourist Board won the Best Tourist Board in the Caribbean award.

•          Jamaica won the Best Wedding Destination, Best Honeymoon Destination and Best Culinary Destination Awards.

•          Minister Bartlett was awarded the Pacific Area Travel Writers Association (PATWA) Tourism Minister of the Year for Sustainable Tourism.

•          Jamaica copped the PATWA International Travel Award for Destination of the Year.

TripAdvisor

•          Jamaica was listed in renowned travel website – TripAdvisor’s Top 25 Best Destinations in the World for 2019. The island was ranked 14th on the TripAdvisor® Travellers’ Choice™  Awards’ ‘World’s Best Destinations’, and the Best Destination in the Caribbean lists.

•          Negril’s Seven-Mile Beach was named the 10th Best Beach in the World and the Fifth Best Beach in TripAdvisor® Travellers’ Choice™ Awards’ for Beaches.

RJRGleaner Award

•          The Tourism Minister was also awarded the RJR Gleaner Hospitality Jamaica 2019 Pioneer Award.