Tourism rebounds but recovery remains unfinished

WESTERN BUREAU:

Jamaica’s tourism industry has rebounded sharply from Hurricane Melissa, but hoteliers warn that recovery remains far from complete one year later, despite about 90 per cent of the sector’s room stock being back in operation.

Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) President O’Brian Heron says the recovery has surpassed expectations, but unresolved insurance claims, infrastructure gaps and rising costs continue to threaten the industry’s progress since the Category 5 hurricane struck on October 28, 2025.

“Reopening is not the same as recovery. What we have is a strong rebound, and a rebound has to be nurtured if it is to be sustained,” Heron told The Gleaner in an assessment marking the hurricane’s first anniversary.

His remarks come as Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, addressing 300 travel advisers and tourism stakeholders in Toronto last Friday, argued that Jamaica was turning the destruction caused by Melissa into an opportunity to build a stronger and more competitive tourism industry.

“Melissa was able to bend us, but it could not break us. We are not bouncing back; we are bouncing forward,” Bartlett declared.

The differing perspectives highlight the challenges facing an industry that remains central to Jamaica’s foreign-exchange earnings, employment and economic growth.

For Heron, insurance remains the biggest unresolved issue. Nearly a year after the hurricane, some operators are still awaiting settlements.

Many hoteliers, he said, financed repairs from their own resources to reopen properties and restore jobs rather than wait for claims to be processed.

“Our members understand what this industry means to Jamaica’s economy and to employment, and many made the decision not to wait,” he said.

“They reopened and carried the cost of repairs themselves, from their own resources, while they waited on their insurers.”

He argued that the industry was not seeking special treatment but simply expected insurers to meet their contractual obligations.

“They bought insurance precisely so they would not have to, and that promise must now be honoured.”

Beyond rebuilding costs

Operators are still trying to repair balance sheets weakened by reconstruction expenses, lost revenue and the costs of restarting operations.

Even so, Heron said the recovery has moved far faster than many anticipated.

The sector resumed welcoming visitors on December 15, just seven weeks after the hurricane, and more than 80,000 hotel workers have returned to their jobs. Employment has also rebounded across restaurants, attractions, transportation services and craft businesses that depend on tourism.

Between January and August, Jamaica welcomed 2.3 million visitors, while airlines have committed more than 1.3 million seats for the winter season.

“Much of that speaks to something no statistic fully captures: the trust, love and goodwill the world has for Jamaica,” Heron said.

He credited returning visitors, airline partners, travel advisers, investors and close collaboration between the public and private sectors for restoring momentum.

By winter, roughly 90 per cent of the island’s room inventory is expected to be available, with nearly 2,000 rooms scheduled to return in December and another 3,000 in early 2027.

Heron argued that room inventory is a better measure of recovery than the number of hotels reopened, given the wide variation in property size.

Several hotels that remain closed are undergoing extensive remodelling and redesign rather than simply repairing hurricane damage, he said, with owners investing millions of dollars to create a more competitive product.

“What returns will be a stronger, more modern product than what was there before Melissa,” he said.

That view broadly aligns with Bartlett’s argument that reconstruction offers an opportunity to address longstanding weaknesses in Jamaica’s tourism infrastructure.

Among the priorities identified by the minister are improved road links along the north coast, particularly between Ocho Rios and Sangster International Airport. He also pointed to proposed aviation facilities near Little London and Vernamfield, an airstrip in the Treasure Beach area, and upgrades to the island’s international airports.

Heron, however, said several roads used daily by visitors and tourism workers still require urgent attention.

While acknowledging the Government’s planned road improvements and bypass projects, he called for faster implementation.

“I have been in close dialogue with the Government on these, and that dialogue continues. What I want to see now is swifter action, because these roads carry our visitors and our workers every day.”

Beyond reconstruction, Heron warned that competitiveness remains a growing concern.

He singled out the proposed increase in General Consumption Tax (GCT) on tourism, arguing that higher costs could make Jamaica less attractive in an increasingly competitive global market.

“Any increase in the cost of a Jamaican holiday, including the proposed increase in GCT on tourism, risks undermining the very recovery we have worked so hard to achieve,” Heron cautioned.

He also identified fuel prices, airlift availability and economic conditions in Jamaica’s major source markets as factors that could affect the sector’s momentum.

Bartlett, meanwhile, is banking on strong international partnerships to sustain visitor demand.

About 400,000 airline seats have been scheduled from Canada for the winter season, underscoring the importance of that market to Jamaica’s recovery.

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com