With the winter tourist season officially underway, the projected buoyancy by tourism officials have translated into near-capacity bookings for many hotels in the main resort areas on the island.

At lower end of the spectrum, some hotels are reporting similar numbers to what was experienced before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the industry.

Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett had projected that Jamaica should see an estimated 4.14 million visitors to its shores by year end, with the sector expected to rake in US$4.265 billion in earnings for 2023, representing a projected increase of 17.8 per cent over total inflows for 2022. A significant number of those visitors will vacation during the winter tourist season.

Representatives from various hotels across the major tourist areas (Montego Bay, Negril and Ocho Rios) spoke to Our Today about their numbers for the season so far. Sales Executives from Sandals Montego Bay and Holiday Inn reported over 90 per cent occupancy this week, with that number set to remain steady for the rest of the year, and going into 2024. Kadejera Harvey, a sales executive from Sandals Montego Bay noted that “these numbers are similar and on par with our usual numbers at this time ever since we re-opened after COVID.”

When asked if the numbers match pre-COVID occupancy, Harvey said, “we are definitely fine. We are back to where we were.”

Holiday Inn also confirmed that this number is similar or slightly improved compared to the numbers at a similar time prior to the pandemic, which confirms Bartlett’s continued assertions of a complete rebound from the pandemic.

Hotels in Negril also seem to have rebounded nicely with sales executives reporting upwards of 90 per cent occupancy as well. In fact, the Couples Resort in Negril expects to be at 100 per cent capacity going into the next week, up from the 93 per cent rate since the start of the season. The resort expects this 90 per cent rate of occupancy to continue into next year, based on current confirmed bookings across several resorts.

Roshene McLean, front desk agent at Couples Negril, told OUR Today: “This is level we expect to remain at into the at least the early part of January.”

A part from major hotel chains, smaller properties are having a good start to the winter tourist season as well. At the Pineapple Court and Ocean View Hotels, they are currently experiencing 90 per cent and 93 per cent occupancy rates, respectively, with most of their rooms set to remain booked into next year.

“We keep these numbers well into the year, and it doesn’t fall until around March and then we pick up again,” the supervisor at the fairly new Ocean View Hotel, Ajoya Martin, told OUR Today. For the Ocean View Hotel, this represents a positive post-COVID boom, as the property is only in its second full-year of operation and has consistently remained above 60 per cent occupancy throughout. In both years, so far, it has managed to hit a 90 per cent occupancy rate during the island’s peak tourist season.

The main tourist areas all seem to be faring equally at this time, with all three major resort areas reporting similar occupancy rates.

The hotels also have a fairly good mix of local and foreign guests, with most stays being booked by families and couples. The activities that are most popular seem to be nature-oriented, with rafting, waterfalls and beaches being the most common. Beaches near or on-property are receiving steady numbers as well as nature excursions. This seems to be in keeping with recognisable trends in the post-COVID era of travel, with more travellers opting for a vacation incorporating activities with nature and relaxation.

With several weeks left in the season, it does seem the the island is still on target to have an incredible year in terms of visitors and revenues, with most hotels expected to remain at this high level of occupancy for the remainder of 2023 into early 2024.