Destination Jamaica In High Demand Globally

• Jamaica is now leading the world in terms of demand by persons searching for destinations; international air passengers; Global Distribution System (GDS) bookings as well as air seat capacity recovery. 
• Director of Tourism, Donovan White informed that the demand for Jamaica as of now is 38.0% of 2019, against the world demand of 24.0%. 
• In terms of air seat capacity flown, committed or scheduled to be flown to the destination, Jamaica is at 65.0% of 2019 air capacity against the world capacity of 44.0% of 2019. 
• He added that for international air passengers, Jamaica is at 45.0% of 2019 levels against the world delivery of passengers of 31.0% and by way of GDS – the platform travel agents use to book travel – Jamaica is at 61.0% of 2019 levels versus 28.0% for the world. 
• The information about Jamaica’s world-leading status was shared recently in a sit-down with Amadeus at the World Travel Market in London. Mr. White noted that Amadeus is the most interconnected IT company in the travel industry globally, handling some 8.5Bn travel transactions daily. 
• This demand for Jamaica’s tourism product has been reflected in the gradual recovery in tourism activity since the start of the year. These numbers could improve if the country is able to increase its vaccination rate to stem the spread of the virus and support further improvement in country’s ranking on the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention’s travel advisory. A higher vaccination rate would facilitate further easing of restrictions on movement and re-opening of the entertainment sector. Jamaica is currently ranked at level three, which urges US travelers to be fully vaccinated before travelling.

(Source: JIS & NCBCM Research)