Jamaica will once again play host to the Caribbean Hotel and Tourist Association (CHTA) Caribbean Travel Marketplace, set for May 21 and 22.

Jamaica hosted the event in 2019 and this 42nd edition will be held at the Montego Bay Convention Centre.

“This is a great opportunity for us as a Caribbean people not just to showcase the strength and power of
our assets but also to provide leadership with innovation. The overview of this event indicates that the
region is now ready to pivot and take a new perspective on itself in this post-COVID era to grow tourism
to another level,” Edmund Bartlett, minister of tourism expressed at a press briefing held on March 17 in Kingston.

This year’s marketplace, for the first time will organise and manage through the CHTA, a multi-
destination media familiarisation trip to Cayman, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica. Five specially
invited members of the media will set out to attend a 10-day trip to experience these Caribbean islands
and their unique offerings.

This year’s festivities will also involve the observance of the first ‘Responsible Tourism Day’, with special focus on community tourism.

“We at CHTA recognize as the issues of climate change and sustainable development continue to confront us, we must play our part in making and ensuring change. So not only will we talk about business and market tourism, but we will also be responsible stewards of our tourism communities.” CHTA President Nicola Madden-Greig explained. T

he CHTA has confirmed three of its five target projects, which includes activities with the Montego Bay Marine Park, the SOS Children’s Village and an agriculture project with Croydon Estate, which supplies fruits and vegetables to the tourism industry.

Donovan White, director of tourism, is looking forward to this year’s staging. “Hosting Caribbean
Travel Marketplace is a great opportunity to showcase not only the Caribbean but also destination
JAMAICA and its rich offerings and experiences. This collective effort helps to boost the Caribbean as a
tourism hotspot and we look forward to making this year’s staging memorable,” he noted.

The travel trade show will host a Caribbean Travel Forum on May 20, CHTA Travel Marketplace on May
21 – 22 and the ‘Responsible Tourism Day’ on Labour Day, May 23.