The Jamaica Travel Specialists Programme, which provides travel agents with special educational sessions and a certification option, will be expanded into Latin America next year as Jamaica continues to extend its reach in that region.
“We are happy… to announce that we are extending the programme next year into Latin America where we already trained over 2,500 travel agents to join the programme. Our plan is to continue to grow the programme to a level where Jamaica can feel comfortable that we are safe in the hands of the travel agent when decisions about where people choose to go are being made,” Director of Tourism Donovan White said.
He added that the programme will soon be available in Spanish and Portuguese.
“Our work is never to be static; we are always looking for the next frontier to conquer. We believe this is a move in the right direction and we are going to continue pushing that way,” said White.
The tourism director also noted that negotiations are underway for additional airlift out of Latin America.
“The expectation is that we are going to continue to open up Latin America. We started this journey some five years ago and three years ago we added LATAM Airlines to Copa, in terms [of] air travel. We are looking to re-engage not just LATAM, but there are conversations in the works with other airlines in South America,” he said.
He was speaking with members of the media after the recent One Love Affair Awards Dinner and Reception at the Ocean Coral Spring Hotel in Trelawny.
During the annual event the Jamaica Tourist Board celebrates the work of the top 50 travel agents who provide exceptional service to the destination.
“It’s great to celebrate our biggest partners which is the travel agents. They make this (tourism) business work. They ensure that their clients’ decision about where to go is taken and when decisions are made Jamaica is always in the [conversation] with travel agent. These are our travel specialists, they are trained Jamaica specialists, they work very hard with the destination,” White said.
“The one partner we could rely on, right throughout the pandemic, to stay engaged with us was our travel agents. And so tonight was a celebration of their work celebration of their dedication to Jamaica,” he added.
White revealed that of the over 27,000 agents “on our platform” most of them focus on Brand Jamaica.
“Close to about 20,000 of those are actively selling Jamaica every single day and so what we do every day is the engagement,” he said.
TEXT: HORACE HINES