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Jamaica now most-connected country from South America

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Jamaica Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, announced a new flight from Lima, Peru, to Montego Bay that was inaugurated this morning.

Minister Bartlett and Minister Vasquez completed the protocols at the Lima airport.

The Lima hub is one of the largest in South America and will make Jamaica the most-connected country from South America in the English-speaking Caribbean. LATAM is the largest airline in South America.

The flight will begin a 3-day rotation today with 174 passengers and crew on board.

For more news about Jamaica, please click here.

Jamaica now most-connected country from South America
Jamaica now most-connected country from South America

MEDIA CONTACT: Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, Corporate Communications, 64 Knutsford Boulevard, Kingston 5, Tel: 920-4926-30, Fax: 920-4944

Jamaica earns to date US$3.1 billion with 3.4 million in arrivals

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Jamaica Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett has announced that preliminary figures from the Jamaica Tourist Board indicate that the island has earned US$3.1 billion to date. The data also indicates that from January to October 2019, Jamaica welcomed 3.4 million visitors to the island.

“We are very proud to announce, that we have hit the US$3.1 billion mark for earnings. We had already broken the 3 million mark for arrivals, so we are on track to surpass our target,” said the Minister. 

He added that,” December is usually a strong month for us [Jamaica] and it begins the high season when the rates are higher. In all probability we will more than likely make our US$3.7 billion projection for this year and with a little luck we might be on the edge for US$4billion.”

The Minister notes that this puts the island on track to surpass the Tourism Ministry’s five-pillar growth strategy, which when proposed in 2016 was projected to result in visitor arrivals increasing to five million in five years and earning US$5 billion.

The strategy, which targets securing five million visitors by 2021, is utilising the five tourism pillars, which includes tapping into new markets; developing new products; promoting investments and building new partnerships.

Minister Bartlett has referred to this strategy as the Ministry of Tourism 5x5x5 growth plan for the sector.

“The market diversification programme that the Ministry has embarked on over the last three years, based on our 5x5x5 strategy is going apace. We targeted South America as one of the major new frontiers that we are going to spend some time on and get some good returns.

“Already the returns are coming because we are up 23% in South America which is really strong. We have also been able to get 11 flights a week from COPA coming out of Panama for Kingston and Montego Bay,” said the Minister.

He added that he would be leading a small team over the weekend in Lima, to inaugurate the first direct flight from the destination to Montego Bay, Jamaica by LATAM Airlines. The flight, which arrives on Monday, will begin a three-rotation programme by LATAM into Montego Bay.

The Minister made these announcements earlier today during a Tourism Working Group (TWG) Meeting hosted at his New Kingston Office.

The TWG was developed to assess various issues in Jamaica’s rapidly growing tourism sector and is headed by Prominent PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) partner, Wilfred Baghaloo.

For more news about Jamaica, please click here.

Media Contact:

Corporate Communications Division

Ministry of Tourism

64 Knutsford Boulevard

Kingston 5

Telephone: 920-4924,

Fax: 906-019

Bartlett upbeat about Peru Flight to Jamaica

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Jamaica Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, (seen right in photo) in discussion with Chilean Ambassador to Jamaica, His Excellency Euduaro Javier Bonilla Menchaca (second right) during his courtesy call at the Minister’s New Kingston Office on Wednesday October 30, 2019.

Joining in the discussion are (left to right) Roberto Alvarez, Deputy Head of Mission, Chilean Embassy in Jamaica and Mrs. Jennifer Griffith, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism.

During the courtesy call, Minister Bartlett discussed the positive impact the upcoming inaugural flight from Lima, Peru to Montego Bay will have on the island’s arrivals from the Latin America region.

The service which will be through LATAM airlines three days weekly, is expected to begin next month.

MEDIA CONTACT: Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, Corporate Communications, 64 Knutsford Boulevard, Kingston 5, Tel: 920-4926-30, Fax: 920-4944

Bartlett Looking to Boost Arrivals from Brazil

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Jamaica Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett (seen right in the photo) greets Brazilian Ambassador to Jamaica, His Excellency Carlos Alberto Michaelsen den Hartog, during a courtesy call at the Minister’s New Kingston office on October 29, 2019.

During the meeting, the pair discussed strengthening tourism arrange,ments to increase the number of Brazilians visiting the island annually.

Ambassador den Hartog expressed excitement about LATAM airlines inaugurating three weekly flights from Chile and other South American countries later this year.

Additionally, he commented on Copa Airlines representing a strong airlift security arrangement out of South America.

MEDIA CONTACT: Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, Corporate Communications, 64 Knutsford Boulevard, Kingston 5, Tel: 920-4926-30, Fax: 920-4944

Ailing Avianca’s plan to sell airport slots might be rejected

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Avianca is the fourth largest airline in Brazil, and it has been in judicial recovery since December of last year with debts of approximately R$500 million.

A new plan approved by Avianca’s creditors on Friday is not setting well with Brazil’s anti-trust agency, CADE. The agency said that depending on which competitors buy out Avianca’s main airport slots, the operation may not be approved.

The approved plan includes the partition of the company’s assets into 7 parts, called Individual Productive Units (UPIs). Six of the UPIs will be made up of slots (airport landing and take-off times), employees and aircraft, and the seventh will hold Avianca’s loyalty program, Amigo.

It is CADE’s expectation is that agents will find the best solution to suit the private interests of Avianca’s shareholders and its creditors as well as the public interests of Brazilian consumers.

Included in each UPI will be the registration and authorizations of routes and the right to use slots at Congonhas (SP), Guarulhos (SP), and Santos Dumont (RJ) airports, in addition to the temporary right of use of the Avianca Brasil brand and the Air Operator Certificate approved by the National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC).

CADE stated that the best case scenario would be for a new company to assume the operation of the units for which there would be no change in the concentration level of the sector. But if the UPIs are acquired by Gol or Latam, the agency sees problems, because these two companies already have high market shares in the main routes in which Avianca operates. Both Gol and Latam have announced interest in purchasing some of the Avianca’s assets.

Azul Airlines had announced earlier that it had made an offer to acquire Avianca Brasil’s assets, including airplanes and airport slots for US$105 million.

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