As of this summer locals will be able to enjoy a special rate at a number of Jamaican hotels as the tourism industry and local players ramp up efforts to boost domestic tourism. For some properties, the move is also a way to say thanks to locals who supported them when the country’s borders were closed to overseas visitors because of COVID-19.
Jamaica’s Tourism Minister Ed Bartlett was unable to provide a specific date for the rollout but promises it should be in place before the winter tourist season begins.
“We’ve been working on it to commence for summer. I can’t give you a specific time but I believe that we will see some of it for this summer. But certainly by September we should have a clear position on it,” he said in an exclusive interview with LetsTravelCaribbean.com.
President of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) Clifton Reader confirmed that discussions are underway among members to reach a consensus on the discount that will be offered.
“Some of them responded in a positive way, but we haven’t had a chance yet to survey the entire membership. We will be putting it out to [them] because this only came up recently; so it’s not that we have gone in and fleshed it out or anything as yet,” he told [add site name]. “But some people said that they’ve been doing it already and some of the ones that weren’t doing it said it’s something they will participate in.”
The suggestion is for a fixed discount that applies to all rates from the lower to higher end of the market. Reader is hoping to convince the tourism ministry to promote participating properties on the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) website as an incentive for more of them to get on board with the initiative.
“The staycation concept was developed [to boost domestic tourism],” said Reader. “It can be further enhanced with the special rate, a fixed percentage discount.”
In July 2020, with the launch of the ‘Rediscover Jamaica’ campaign being promoted by the JTB, tourism stakeholders and COVID-19 Resilient Corridor interests urged more Jamaicans to enjoy the country’s wide range of tourism products and attractions. According to the JHTA president, the move paid off with locals who could not go abroad for their usual vacation discovering many of Jamaica’s hidden gems. “We are ready with the product, but we just have to entice Jamaicans to utilise those products and one way is preferential rates for them,” he said. Boosting domestic tourism is among the list of opportunities identified for the global tourism sector in a United Nations World Tourism Organisation survey on members’ priorities for 2022-2023.