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MONTEGO BAY, St. James; May 11, 2018:  Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett has tasked the Tourism Linkages Council to complete the tourism demand study by August this year.

“I have charged the Chairman of the Tourism Linkages Council, Adam Stewart, to complete a demand study that will facilitate quantitative analysis of the need for manufacturing and other goods and services within the sector,” Minister Bartlett said.

The study was designed to identify the existing/ potential demand in the tourism sector for goods and services across local sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing and entertainment.

Photo Credit: (From left) JetBlue Airways' Jack Massey and Dylan Kleopfer, Virgin Islands Port Authority Executive Director David Mapp, Commissioner of Tourism Beverly Nicholson-Doty and JetBlue's Eric Tanner in New York this week.

Commissioner Nicholson-Doty meets with media and airline representatives in Atlanta, Chicago and New York

NEW YORK (April 14, 2018) - U.S. Virgin Islands Commissioner of Tourism Beverly Nicholson-Doty continues to make audiences across the U.S. mainland and the globe aware that the Territory is open for business.

Westmoreland, Jamaica, W.I. (January 12, 2018). Bongo Roache of Westmoreland, Jamaica is one of our popular indigenous certified herbalist/practitioner and a Rastafarian. He has been practicing close to 40 years and freely offers his wisdom and healing methods to all. Today, he needs our support.

On the 31^st of December Bongo had an unfortunate fall, stepping on a rock on his farm, he lost his balance, fell and fractured his left hip. He is presently in hospital awaiting a date for surgery, which has yet to be decided. Therefore, he has asked to receive private surgery at a competent hospital to immediately address any undue blood clotting trauma or misalignment of his hip, which would impair proper walking. Presently at the Savanna La Mar hospital in stable but sometimes painful condition, Bongo requires an implant to repair his hip fracture. After the operation he will require physiotherapy for several weeks to assist him to walk again. 

During his convalescence, he will be unable to practice his livelihood, denying his usual income, which comes from planting, reaping and preparing his herbal remedies from his home base and herbal practice at Zimbali Retreat, Canaan Mountain, Westmoreland. Mr. Mark Swainbank the owner of Zimbali Retreat and Sharon Parris Chambers, Health & Wellness Consultant, have both decided to source donations through “Go Fund Me" to assist Bongo Roache. 

KINGSTON, Jamaica, Sunday January 7, 2018 – Spirit Airlines will be increasing flights to Jamaica in March.

It has announced additional flights to Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay from Baltimore-Washington International Airport in Maryland, United States, from March 22.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett hailed this development as yet another indication of the increasing demand for Jamaica and augurs very well for the tourism growth strategy.

Source: ETN

Caribnewsroom Editor's Comment: This is a must read article which brings a wealth of respect and value to Caribbean peoples. Valuing a society, it mores and its contribution to the world is worth more than gold. (Sharon Parris-Chambers)

Maybe I should have suggested a headline ‘The quest for the Caribbean heart and soul and purifying its society’. But there are more and different perspectives to it. It should be a top resolution for the New Year. Tourists and especially the new generation of so called Millennials will become the core customer group from the Caribbean source markets for travel and leisure. They are known to be looking for authenticity when the they visit destinations. They wish to find, understand and experience original culture or at least significant remnants of it. Culture may be one of the highest of values of a territory.

SECRETARY GENERAL CARIBBEAN TOURISM ORGANIZATION

Bridgetown, Barbados (28 Dec 2017) - This has been a challenging year for Caribbean tourism. While the first half of the year saw exciting growth in both tourism infrastructure and tourist arrivals over the previous year, in September we were hit hard by a series of unusual hurricanes that not only destroyed property, but also took the lives of many of our citizens. We must never forget the souls we lost along the way.

Physically, we will recover. Our Caribbean people are a resilient population. We will put the bricks and mortar back together and the hotels and vegetation will rise again and shine in the brilliant sunlight.

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett travels to Geneva, Switzerland today (December 17, 2017) , to present the recently unveiled Montego Bay Declaration, to delegates attending the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) Closing Ceremony for the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development 2017.

“The Declaration of Montego Bay will become incorporated in the documents and the outcomes of the International Year of Sustainability. This is the perhaps the biggest legacy that we could hope for as a small destination – that our name will be indelibly etched in the lexicon of tourism references so that children yet unborn, will know that Montego Bay existed,” said Minister Bartlett.

The 15-point Declaration was one of the major outcomes of the recently concluded UNWTO Global Conference on Sustainable Tourism held in Montego Bay from November 27 to 29. It was first presented by Minister Bartlett and Executive Director of the UNWTO, Carlos Vogeler, on November 29 at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St. James.

With just a few days to go, Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett is satisfied that all systems are in place for the November 27 to 29 staging of the global conference on sustainable tourism at the Montego Bay Convention Centre (MBCC).

Registration for the UNWTO, Government of Jamaica, World Bank Group and Inter-American Development Bank Global Conference on Jobs and Inclusive Growth: Partnerships for Sustainable Tourism, was set to cut off on November 17 but was extended to the November 20 to accommodate a last-minute flurry.  

Following a reconnaissance visit to the MBCC and reports from the organizing committee on Saturday (November 18), Minister Bartlett gave the thumbs up. “I’m very satisfied with what I’ve seen and heard,” he said.

In his capacity as chairman of the newly formed Caribbean Tourism Recovery Group Secretariat (CTRGS) and coordinator of the ‘UNWTO Disaster Recovery Working Group for the Affected States in the Caribbean’, Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, has been invited to give an address at the International Travel Crisis Management Summit (ITCMS) in London.

Minister Bartlett, who departed the island yesterday (November 02, 2017), will use the platform at the ITCMS to share the measures being implemented to increase resiliency in the sector. A major part of this is the creation of the Tourism Rehabilitation Action Plan for the Caribbean islands recently devastated by natural disasters.

“The Caribbean remains united in rebuilding our tourism sector to its former glory. In fact, my Ministry is working very closely with the international and regional organizations as well as other Ministers within the Caribbean to create a working strategy to strengthen the sector’s resilience to the effects of climate change and natural disaster, thus making it more sustainable,” said the Minister. 

KINGSTON, Jamaica; October 25, 2017: The Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) has announced their endorsement of the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) global conference to be held in Jamaica in November.

Adam Goldstein, who is the FCCA’s Executive Committee Chairman and current President and COO of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd, gave the endorsement to Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, during a private meeting between Presidents and CEOs of  FCCA member lines and Ministers of Tourism, on October 25 in Merida, Mexico.

During the meeting, the group also discussed strategies to drive year-round traffic to the region, the creation of more employment opportunities and the development of strategic partnerships.

Jamaica's Ministry of Tourism

KINGSTON, Jamaica, October 4, 2017:  Jamaica continues to extend our thoughts and prayers to our Caribbean brothers and sisters, especially residents in those islands that took a direct hit from the recent hurricanes and to everyone who has been or will be affected as a result of these catastrophic storms.

We recognize that the entire Caribbean region will be adversely impacted by the lasting results of Hurricanes Irma and Maria and have set a course of action that is designed to minimize the long-term effect on the region.

The brand began managing the resort on Oct 1; in the first quarter of 2018, the property will be fully reflagged and renamed as the Mandarin Oriental, Canouan.

The property has a total of 26 suites and 12 villas; it also includes a beachside infinity pool, three night-lit tennis courts, a fitness center and a kids’ club.

The five-square-mile island is home to a Tom Fazio-designed golf course, a superyacht marina and the largest natural coral reef in the southern Caribbean.

Join Millions of Reggae Fans Around the World in Viewing FREE LiveStreams of Jamaica’s Reggae Sumfest 25th Anniversary Festival on July 21 & 22

Join the greatest Reggae and Dancehall Festival in the world, Reggae Sumfest, 25th Anniversary edition, in Montego Bay, JA via LiveStream at 8pm (Jamaican time) on Friday, July 21 and Saturday, July 22.  You can check the World Timezone calculator here

The free, cutting-edge global live streaming can be accessed from http://reggaesumfest.com/#livestreams. Once there, simply choose your stream option: HD Broadcast Livestream and/or 360° Livestream.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; June 20, 2017:  Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett will join leading tourism stakeholders in Washington DC tomorrow (June 21) for the Tourism Knowledge Exchange Forum 2017, which is expected to highlight the latest innovations in sustainable tourism development.

The event is being organized by the Ministry of Tourism in partnership with Chemonics International, George Washington University and the World Bank Group. It is expected to bring together leaders and achievers in the tourism industry – such as representatives from the World Economic Forum, AirBnb and Harvard University – to discuss the impacts of the shared economy, new systems for measuring tourism impact and indicators as a driver of understanding competitiveness

“It is critical for us to have a sustainable presence in the international marketplace, especially in instances where we can strategize the way ahead for tourism. I am therefore very pleased to join organizers to discuss how we can better incorporate the key enablers of sustainable tourism destination development and competitiveness,” said Minister Bartlett.