Jamaica’s tourism capital, Montego Bay, has signalled its readiness for the phased resumption of tourism activities following Hurricane Melissa with the homeporting of TUI Cruises’ Mein Schiff 1 vessel carrying 2,894 passengers.

Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett underscored the importance of “the first cruise ship to visit Montego Bay, post-hurricane”.

“So, the arrival of the Mein Schiff 1 marks the resumption of cruise shipping activities in the resort area and proves that the cruise sub-sector is rebounding strongly,” he noted.

“…Since the passage of Hurricane Melissa, Jamaica has welcomed some 32,000 cruise visitors, and by the end of November 2025, we will record approximately 64,000 cruise visitors during the recovery period. This will contribute to the economic recovery of our country and will also benefit our tourism workers,” the minister added.

Ian Dear, chairman of the Tourism Product Development Company Limited (TPDCo) and member of the Tourism Recovery Task Force, was among a party which recently welcomed Captain Georgios Dimou and his crew of 1,000 on the arrival of the German cruise ship.

With just four weeks since Hurricane Melissa began to impact the flow of both cruise and stopover arrivals, Dear commended public sector entities and private sector partners for their united effort in working to restore the island’s premier resort destination, which, according to Montego Bay Mayor Richard Vernon, has a 50 per cent economic dependence on tourism.

In keeping with the task force’s mandate of coordinating the reopening and recovery of Jamaica’s tourism sector, Dear disclosed, “We have activated different clean-up crews across the resort spaces to tidy up, not only for our visitors but primarily for our citizens, and the visitors will benefit from it.” 

He also disclosed that the task force partnered with the St James Municipal Corporation on a mass clean-up initiative ahead of the arrival of the first post-hurricane cruise ship.

Dear, however, conceded that “there’s still more to be done but the work continues and we’re very happy to see this cruise ship in Montego Bay.”

For his part, Mayor Vernon welcomed the Mein Shiff 1, pointing out it ” speaks to our efforts here in Montego Bay; and it also speaks to the fact that the ships would not come unless we’re ready.”

He further noted that both incoming and outgoing visitors on the ship “aligns with what we’re trying to achieve now as a city in pivoting from care packages to economic stability, because we need to get our people back to work, and the visitors are providing this for a range of workers.

Meanwhile, Captain Dimou said being the first cruise ship to return to Montego Bay in the wake of the hurricane was very significant to him and his crew.

“It’s human nature that we want to assist and being the first one means it’s going to be difficult because you have to anticipate what might go on, but everything works fine,” he expressed.

Crew aboard the Mein Schiff 1 donated 12 pallets of relief items, including bottled water, food products and educational material for children in aid with Montego Bay’s recovery.