As the 2025/26 winter tourist season officially commenced on Monday (December 15), Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett says the domestic sector is 71 per cent ready to accommodate arrivals in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa.

The sector closed following the passage of the category-five system, which made landfall on October 28 and left many hotels and attractions along the west and north coasts in varying stages of destruction.

Minister Bartlett pointed out that while some hotels are not yet fully prepared to accommodate their usual occupancy, all attractions are ready, as are the country’s three airports.

“So, we know that we have lost a few things, but what we have is so strong and so powerful that we can say to the world today, ‘come to Jamaica and feel all right, because we are ready for you’,” he said.

The minister was delivering remarks during the annual staff appreciation breakfast for Norman Manley International Airport (NMIA) workers, held at the facility in Kingston on Monday.

Bartlett noted that Jamaica’s tourism sector, in its readiness to lead the Caribbean once again, has attracted the attention of airline partners who have already indicated plans to begin offering weekly flights to the destination.

“Let’s focus on the fact that we are substantially ready. Our airline partners are responding to us. Copa [Airlines] is adding flights – we’re going to be getting 10 flights per week in Montego Bay now, and five flights in Kingston,” he indicated.

The minister also proudly announced that between December 11 and 14, a total of 20,800 tourists arrived in Jamaica.

Additionally, in the past five weeks, more than 300,000 tourists entered Jamaica through cruise ships and stopovers, which Minister Bartlett said demonstrates that the sector is poised for a rapid recovery from the hurricane.

“I am proud to say today that the recovery is going to be a V-shaped… because, already in less than five weeks, we have brought over 300,000 tourists into Jamaica… and that is the beginning of that V-shaped recovery,” he emphasised.

Bartlett highlighted that the tourism sector is a major contributor to Jamaica’s economy, which is expected to strengthen as the industry rebounds.

“But tourism is not just about bringing back visitors… it’s about bringing back the economy of Jamaica. We are excited about that prospect because every time that there is an economic slump based on any global activity and catastrophic event, it is tourism that comes back… the fastest, because of its immediate convertibility properties,” the minister said.

“The immediate moment that the plane flies in, the dollar comes, and when the ship docks at the port, the dollar flows and it goes straight into the pockets of the ordinary person. So there is no time lag to grow and to nurture and to package, as tourism is instant dollar response,” Bartlett further stated.