As TUI, Sunwing resume flights ...
RIU moves to bolster arrivals with all hotels ready post-Melissa
Published:Saturday | November 22, 2025 | 12:05 AMJanet Silvera/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
RIU Jamaica has set its sights on boosting arrival numbers in the coming weeks, as major partners TUI Group and Sunwing Vacations resume flights into the island following the devastation of Hurricane Melissa.
With the international airlift returning and properties rapidly reopening, RIU says all its hotels are ready, or just days away from being ready, to welcome back guests.
Director of Sales and Marketing Niurka Garcia-Linton said the chain’s recovery has been powered by staff resilience, unwavering corporate support and an outpouring of concern from travel advisers and repeat visitors. She described the storm as “possibly the worst ever to hit Jamaica”, and said RIU’s leadership at every level prioritised the human impact above all else.
“Before we even shared updates about damage, the first question from our bosses was, ‘How are you doing? How are the staff?’” she told reporters during a press briefing at RIU Montego Bay on Wednesday.
Garcia-Linton said she was deeply moved by the way RIU employees continued serving guests through the storm’s aftermath, keeping operations steady despite personal challenges.
“The resilience, the smiles, the desire to be here, it was overwhelming,” she said. “Even in the days after Melissa passed, I saw the same energy and the same determination to get the hotels ready.”
She also praised travel advisers, tour operators and guests who flooded RIU’s Facebook pages with messages asking after staff members and requesting photos of the properties to help discourage cancellations.
“Many content creators reached out saying, ‘Send us pictures. We want people to know the hotels are okay, that they should not cancel, that they should come to Jamaica.’ That support has been an engine for us.”
Garcia-Linton confirmed that RIU Ocho Rios never closed, as hundreds of guests were unable to find outbound flights and remained on property until November 11. The hotel, which had an official reopening date of November 9, is now fully operational, with its water park, restaurants and entertainment all running and occupancy hovering near 40 per cent.
The support from RIU’s largest partners, she said, will help accelerate recovery.
RESUMPTION OF FLIGHTS
Canada’s Sunwing Vacations resumed operations on November 20, while UK-based TUI Group restarts flights on November 24, with the Netherlands returning on December 2. Garcia-Linton said these flights are “critical” to restoring room nights after Melissa disrupted tourism across western Jamaica.
Their return is also behind RIU’s decision to reopen more hotels quickly: RIU Montego Bay reopens November 23; RIU Palace Jamaica reopens November 24 and RIU Palace Aquarelle and the remaining Montego Bay hotels are tentatively scheduled for December 15.
She added that the Negril properties are operationally ready, with final external clearances expected soon.
“We understand that the quicker we open all our properties, the quicker staff can return to work and the quicker Jamaica’s economy stabilises,” she said. “Our objective is to have all properties open before the end of the year.”
Garcia-Linton closed her remarks with a call for solidarity across the global travel trade, echoing Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett’s message that the island needs its partners more than ever.
“Jamaica is getting ready, Jamaica is coming back, and Jamaica will be stronger than before,” she said. “We want to make sure that all those who love Jamaica have a place to stay. And the best way to support our tourism sector and our economy is to come and visit us.”