Last updated: 3:55 PM ET, Thu May 9, 2024
Jamaica continues to post unprecedented visitor arrivals in 2024, recording 1.7 million
visitors to date via significant increases in land-based and cruise ship
visitors compared with 2023, the country’s top tourism official said this week.
The Caribbean nation has hosted 1,016,185
land-based, overnight visitors and more than 700,000 cruise passengers through
May 7, said Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica’s minister of tourism, during a televised
interview from the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai.
The 2024 land-based arrivals represent a 4.6
percent increase over 2023 while this year’s cruise arrivals are up 23 percent
over 2023, Bartlett said. Jamaica is poised to host five million annual visitors
by 2025.
“Despite the disruptions caused by the pandemic,
Jamaica is on its way to achieving an unprecedented milestone,” Bartlett said. “We
will continue to aggressively market the destination and work assiduously with
our partners to get there,” he said.
“Jamaica remains a premier destination that is
highly sought after for its authentic experiences,” said Donovan White, Jamaica’s
director of tourism. “Whether it’s our food, music or entertainment, there is a
vibe that only comes alive in Jamaica.”
Earlier this year, Bartlett said Jamaica is
positioned to reach the five million annual visitor mark within four years
rather than the five years projected earlier.
U.S. travelers are behind Jamaica’s 2024 visitor
increases, the tourism minister said. U.S. airline capacity increases enabled
the country to remain Jamaica’s largest source market, totaling 74 percent of arrivals,
a 16 percent increase over 2023.
“We are grateful to see continued growth in our
arrivals,” Bartlett added, “which speaks to the confidence our tourism partners
and visitors have in the destination.
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