JAMAICA to add 8,000 new hotel rooms, New airlift arrangements in place

KINGSTON, Jamaica, Aprtil 5, 2022 - A total of 8,500 new hotel rooms are set to come on stream within the next five years while new arrangements have been put in place  to bring more visitors to the island says Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, made the disclosure as he opened the 2022/23 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on April 5.

Mr. Bartlett said among the projects is the 2,000-room Princess Resort in Hanover, which will become Jamaica’s largest resort.

“We have 2,000 rooms coming with Hard Rock Resort development, and we have 1,000 rooms coming with Sandals and Beaches in St. Ann,” he added.

Plans are also under way for the Viva Wyndham Resort north of Negril with 1,000 rooms, the new RIU Hotel in Trelawny with approximately 700 rooms, a new Secrets Resort in Richmond, St. Ann, with around 700 rooms, and Bahia Principe has announced massive expansion plans by its owners, Grupo Piñero, out of Spain.

“This will be the largest wave of tourism development and expansion in the history of Jamaica. We are satisfied that notwithstanding the COVID disruptions, the investment climate in Jamaica remains strong and buoyant,” Mr. Bartlett said.

In the meantime, Jamaica’s tourism sector is set to benefit from new and increased airlift arrangements.

Touris minister Edmund Bartlett, told parliament that during a recent market blitz in North America, American Airlines executives confirmed as many as 17 non-stop flights per day on many major routes to Jamaica.

He noted that Miami, Dallas, Charlotte, Chicago, and Philadelphia will serve as critical gateways.

Mr. Bartlett said Frontier Airlines is now offering non-stop service from Miami, Atlanta and Orlando, and is looking to add two to three weekly direct flights from Denver, Colorado later this year.

The Tourism Minister also informed that Eurowings, Europe’s third-largest point-to-point airline, began its inaugural trip from Frankfurt, Germany to Montego Bay’s Sangster International Airport on November 3, 2021.

Germany has historically been an important market for Jamaica, with 23,000 German visitors in 2019. This figure is expected to increase significantly once Eurowings and Condor commence nonstop flights.

In addition, TUI Belgium will operate two direct flights each week between Brussels International Airport and Montego Bay, starting April, while TUI Netherlands will operate one direct flight per week between Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport and Montego Bay.

Mr. Bartlett said Boeing 787 Dreamliners, with roughly 300 seats each, are the planes being used for the flights.

He noted, further, that VING, a subsidiary of Sunclass Airlines, will restart direct flights from Stockholm to Jamaica with a fortnightly flying programme beginning in November 2022, which will run through to March 2023, as part of the winter season schedule for 2022/23.

VING will fly nine rotations on the Airbus A330-900neo, each carrying 373 passengers, in addition, American Airlines has committed to operate two weekly nonstop flights between Miami International Airport and the Ian Fleming International Airport in St. Mary, starting November this year.