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Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett (second left) addresses members of the Personal Water Crafts taskforce during a meeting at the Ministry of Tourism’s New Kingston Office on November 1, 2018. Sharing in the moment are (from left) Senior Director of the Ministry’s Tourism Policy & Monitoring Division, Kerry Chambers; Executive Director of the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo), Dr Andrew Spencer; and Senior Director of Technical Services at the Ministry of Tourism, David Dobson.

Tourism Minister, Hon Edmund Bartlett says his Ministry has set a January 2019 target, to rollout new policy arrangements, which will lead to the resumption of Jet Ski activities in the country.

Speaking yesterday at a Jet Ski Taskforce meeting, at the Ministry of Tourism’s New Kingston Office, the Minister said, “I believe that we are now at a point where we can make a cabinet submission in relation to a policy for the water-sport industry in Jamaica.

We are in a position now where we can look at the necessary infrastructure and how we can resource these infrastructure requirements to enable the proper execution of the policy.”

November 2, 2018. Portland, Jamaica, W.I. The fourth and final staging of Mama Africa Arise and Unite 2018 is set to take place on the 24th of November 2018 (New Date) at Di Atlantic Entertainment Center in Manchioneal, Portland. Its focus will be on school/community development and empowerment of the people, youth and girls especially.

In the theme of “One Perfect Love” this culminative event will commence with gates opening at 10:00 a.m. Presentations by sponsors and beneficiaries will precede the opening ceremony at 10:30 a.m. The opening ceremony is scheduled to take place between 1:00 p.m.- 2:00 p.m. It will feature addresses from Mayor and Councillor Paul Thompson, Chairman Portland Municipal Cooperation; Amina Blackwood-Meeks, Cultural Historian; Kesha Brown, President Kiwanis Eastern St. Andrew; Sharon Parris-Chambers, Deputy Coordinator, Caribbean RIC of the Pan African Federalist Movement, as well as, other speakers, sponsors and beneficiaries.

A Press Conference ensues 2:00 p.m.- 4:00 p.m.  Additionally, workshops will be facilitated to cultivate a spirit of liberation and African unity within patrons. The previous three staging of this initiative have built momentum for community support of this final showcase, which promises to be nothing short of inspirational.

MONTEGO BAY, St. James; July 8 2018:  Tourism Minister, Hon Edmund Bartlett is confirming strong regional support for the establishment of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre, which is expected to be operational in September of this year.

“Following a series of discussions with our partners and stakeholders, the Caribbean region has thrown its support behind the initiative. Most recently, the Caribbean Development Bank confirmed that it is fully committed to working with the Resilience Centre in terms of its establishment and the series of programmes and activities that will ensue,” said Minister Bartlett.

The Centre will be housed at the University of the West Indies, Mona, and is being designed to help vulnerable states across the world, to recover quickly from natural disasters. It will specifically target destination preparedness, management and recovery from disruptions and/or crises that threaten economies and livelihoods globally, with real time data and effective communication. 

KINGSTON, Jamaica; June 24, 2018: Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett departed the island on Saturday to participate in the first ‘Resilience Through Tourism Summit’ in Amman, Jordan and to garner more international support for the Global Centre for Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre, which will be hosted at the University of the West Indies, Mona.

“The trip to Jordan is critical to the development of our Resilience Centre. While there, I will meet with the former Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization Dr Taleb Rifai and a number of other experts. Critical to this visit will be my meeting with former Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon to see what role he can play in this centre which has the potential to have a positive impact on vulnerable states across the globe,” said Minister Bartlett.

The invitation for Minister Bartlett to speak was extended by the Travel Weekly Group, via one of the event’s organizers Jacobs Media Group, Europe's largest travel and hospitality business to business media company.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; May 26, 2018:  Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett leaves the island tomorrow to participate in the 4th UNWTO World Forum on Gastronomy Tourism in Bangkok, Thailand.  While there, the Minister will participate in a cooking demonstration of Jamaican cuisine.

“Thais have expressed that they are excited about the prospect of Jamaica’s Run Down, coming to compete with their Rengdang. While we were talking about the cuisines in South Korea recently, they asked us to look at the two and have a cook-off. So, I agreed on the condition that at the end of the demonstrations we create a new cuisine that is a fusion of both the Rengdang and Run Down, which we can call Jamdang,” said the Minister.

The Minister explained that he first noticed the similarities in the Thai Rengdang and the Jamaican Run Down while at the last UNWTO Gastronomy Forum, which took place in San Sebastian, Spain.

It took just one short email for World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvil’s Azerbaijani chief of staff to destroy three years of hard work and expectation by Louis D’Amore, known as the man behind Peace Through Tourism. D’Amore is the founder and president of the International Institute for Peace Through Tourism (IIPT). IIPT is recognized and highly respected worldwide.

It took this short email in March to step on the role, legacy, and work of former UNWTO Secretary General Dr. Taleb Rifai. Rifai was an outspoken supporter of Louis D’Amore and peace through tourism.  Dr. Taleb Rifai joined IIPT as the head of their advisory committee.

The email by the UNWTO chief of staff simply said: “UNWTO decided to no longer have a part in the IIPT – UNWTO summit planned for August in Montreal, Canada.”

KINGSTON, Jamaica; Wednesday, May 16, 2018: Speaking at the 9th Asian Leadership Conference on Globalisation in Crisis: Navigating the World with New Opportunities in Seoul, South Korea, Min the Hon Edmund Bartlett called for the need for a 'Holistic Sustainable Tourism Roadmap for Asia'.

Recognising the growing and future potential of the region, especially with the potential unification of North and South Korea, the growing economies of Indonesia, India and China Minister Bartlett said that Asia will soon become one of the desired tourism destination for many and, a major source market for various other destinations. According to Bartlett, this will be "a game-changer, not only for the Asian region but for countries like Jamaica who will need to prepare for the influx of curious travellers from Asia".

Bartlett stated that the Asian region will need to work with existing stakeholders such as PATA and the UNWTO to enhance their existing products and services and, to develop new products and services in the region to attract the transitioning travellers. He further stated that there will be a need for travel authorities in the region to manage both inbound and outbound travel, while importantly protecting against harm to the environment and effectively safeguarding heritage spaces.

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.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; April 11, 2018: Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett leaves the island today to attend a series of meetings in South America. While there, he is expected to make a presentation on the Global Disaster Resilience Centre that is to be established in Jamaica, as well as garner more support for Small and Medium Sized Tourism Enterprises.

The centre, which was first announced at the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) global conference on Jobs and Inclusive Growth: Partnerships for Sustainable Tourism held in Montego Bay last November, will be located at the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus.

It is being designed to help vulnerable states to recover quickly from natural disasters and is currently endorsed by World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association, and the Caribbean Tourism Organisation.

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.

Source: https://skift.com 

So new questions are being raised about the so-called Trump Slump, the decline of foreign visitors to the United States since the president came into office. As Skift's Dan Peltier reported on Monday, the Commerce Department has suspended releasing data for now because it believes its numbers showing such a decline may be inaccurate.

But now Skift has learned this may not be some short-lived statistical glitch, but a more systemic problem.If true (and who knows what passes for truth in Washington these days) Commerce has a much larger problem on its hands that will have huge implications for the travel industry, in the U.S. and abroad. Companies rely on that information to be accurate to make business plans and projections, launch marketing campaigns, and communicate with shareholders.

Airbnb today is rolling out a few new additions to their home-booking system, including new tiers that are aimed at higher-end customers, called Airbnb Plus and Beyond by Airbnb.

The new Airbnb Plus tier has homes that are verified for “quality and comfort,” rolling out with around 2,000 homes to start that have been inspected against a thorough checklist. The luxury tier, called Beyond by Airbnb, is built around whole trips including hospitality, custom experience and — of course — higher-end homes. Each appears to be targeting verticals within the travel space that make sense based on the typical hospitality industry, but weren’t specifically singled out on Airbnb.

Rather than just searching for a home on Airbnb and flipping through the photos or reviews, the new tiers may offer customers willing to spend more an opportunity to tap into the same expectations they’d get from a luxury resort — or, at least, a higher-end one aiming to hit the status of something like the Sofitel in Bangkok, Thailand. Frequent business travelers often have accumulated massive piles of reward points (and maybe have bigger travel budgets) and may be accustomed to this, and there’s also plenty of opportunity to target the same kinds of experiences that something like an Atlantis full-service resort in the Bahamas might offer (with water slides and all).

Source: By Shivani Vora - New York Times 

• What aspect of the travel industry won’t wellness touch in 2018?

Perhaps none.

From hotels and cruises to airports, airlines, safaris and group tours, wellness promises to be everywhere in the world of travel. Five years ago wellness on the road meant heading to a destination spa to embark on a specific program such as weight loss or staying at a hotel with a nice gym; more recently, the concept has evolved to include all categories of travel, and encompasses overall physical and emotional health.

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.