Jamaica sees increase passenger travel since border reopened

More than 4,000 passengers arrived on the sland of Jamaica, the highest daily arrival count since the reopening of borders on June 15, according to the Jamaica Tourist Board, that expressed cautious optimism as the season peaks.

British Airways’ service from London Gatwick to Montego boosts the air service with 312 passengers and crew, on its inaugural flight to the island. The service will operate twice-weekly flights on Tuesdays and Saturdays until April 2021.

According to JTB, between Nov. 1-28, Jamaica welcomed more than 65,000 tourists, which is an increase over the previous month’s approximately 58,000 passengers. Since June 15 when the country reopened its borders, some 398,864 visitors have traveled to the island.

Donovan White, Jamaica’s director of tourism, said, “We are happy to welcome the return of British Airways to Montego Bay for the winter season, adding to their current service to Kingston.”

“The increased capacity, in addition to our series of travel agent familiarization tours, will serve to boost our arrivals and demonstrate an increased interest in Jamaica. We hope these increasing numbers are an indication of the trend going forward as we continue our robust marketing and promotion efforts,” he said.

Last month, the Jamaica Tourist Board resumed on-island ‘fam tours’ to ensure that travel specialists are equipped to share updates on the destination with their customers and boost business. Over the past few weeks, travel specialists have reported an increase in inquiries and are confident that interest will remain high for Jamaica.

Claire Robinson, owner of Claire Skies Travel and one of the JTB’s Top 50 agents, recently participated in a Northeast Luxury Fam, reiterated the fact that Jamaica remains popular, adding that she was part of a full flight to Montego Bay from Baltimore. “It caught me totally by surprise as this period is between Thanksgiving and Christmas,” she said.

“Thanks to the efforts of the Jamaica Tourist Board and the Ministry of Health and Wellness in making the COVID-19 process a breeze, I was pleased to visit several resorts in Negril and Montego Bay to get an update on the product.”

The island’s primary source market, the United States resumed its fam trip schedule in November. The series will continue through December with agents from the various markets across the US and Canada, and will culminate in January 2021.

For more information about Jamaica, please visit www.visitjamaica.com.

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