On Location: “Open for business”: Jamaica restarts tourism after hurricane, Canadian agents engage

No industry on Earth is as vulnerable as tourism, said the Hon. Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism.

But just as fragile as it is, no industry recovers faster than tourism.

That message emerged as a key takeaway from a VIP luncheon for some 120 tourism delegates in Montego Bay on Sunday (Dec. 14), held one day ahead of Jamaica’s official tourism restart following Hurricane Melissa, a Category 5 storm that sliced through the island on October 28.

The high-profile storm (Jamaica’s strongest on record) hit the island’s southwestern coast with devastating 185 mph winds, causing severe damage and flooding in select communities.

During the week of the storm, some 25,000 tourists were repatriated, while hotels and resorts commenced damage assessments and cleanup efforts.

Several tourism entities in western Jamaica were forced to close due to Melissa’s wrath.

Meanwhile, a Hurricane Melissa Recovery Task Force, comprised of both public and private sector leaders in tourism, was formed to prioritize infrastructure repairs and coordinate a recovery.

Additionally, a $1 billion-dollar fund was announced to support tourism workers affected by the hurricane, offering housing support, care packages and interest-free loans.

More than seven weeks on, the results of those efforts are now evident as Jamaica’s tourism sector officially reopens today (Dec. 15).

A “V-shaped” recovery

The island’s visitation numbers, for obvious reasons, have declined in recent weeks.

But with 71 per cent of tourism assets now active – it’s nearly 80 per cent if you factor in Airbnb and villa rentals – the recovery is expected to accelerate swiftly, said Minister Bartlett.

“When tourism comes back, it comes back in a V-shape. Not a U-shape,” he said, speaking on stage at the convention centre of Iberostar Selection Rose Hall Suites in Montego Bay yesterday.

He cited the COVID-19 pandemic as an example.

“Everybody thought it would take us an entirety to get back to pre-COVID levels,” he said. “Within two years, Jamaica’s tourism not only recovered, it surpassed 2019 levels.”

A “One Love” affair

PAX is in Jamaica this week to get a firsthand view of conditions on the ground.

Our tour from December 13-18, in collaboration with the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), includes visits to Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio and Kingston, with stays at two S Hotels, Sandals Dunn’s River and the Geejam.

Along the way, we’ll be engaging with members of the hurricane recovery task force and visiting local initiatives, including the World Central Kitchen volunteer effort.

And it’s not just media exploring Jamaica this week—a lively group of Canadian travel advisors is also on the island, taking part in a “One Love Affair Humanitarian FAM.”

This recovery-focused trip serves as a special edition of the JTB’s annual “One Love Affair,” an exclusive gala and recognition event that celebrates Jamaica's top 50 travel specialists from around the world.

Given the impact of Hurricane Melissa, this year’s event was scaled back from its usual glamour, with a greater focus on helping rebuild Jamaica as a safe and welcoming destination for visitors.

Nova Scotia-based Sharon Loppie of TravelBug Travel is one of nine Canadian advisors on the FAM, which invited U.S. and U.K.-based agents as well. 

“I was invited to come and it was a no-brainer,” Loppie told PAX at yesterday’s luncheon. “I love Jamaica so much – I’ve been coming here for 20 years – and I want to be here to do whatever I can to help.”

This week, Loppie and her colleagues will be assessing the hurricane’s impact, which varies across communities—regions in Ocho Rios, Port Antonio and Kingston were barely touched.

They will also visit local schools alongside Toronto-based Natasha Borata of the Helping Hands Jamaica Foundation.

The Canadian visit comes on the heels of the JTB’s Canadian team – led by regional director Angella Bennett – hosting its “Harmonies of Hope” benefit concert at the Meridian Arts Centre in North York, ON, on December 10.

The show, hosted by Canadian rapper Kardinal Offishall and TV and internet star Brandon Gonez (also in Jamaica this week, on the media tour) raised $2.3 million dollars for hurricane relief efforts over the course of ten days. 

Still, given recent events, Loppie describes selling Jamaica as a “challenge,” noting that she lost two big wedding bookings that were scheduled on the island in April.

“A lot of people are hesitant,” she said. “But I’m here to show people back home that it’s safe to come.”

During our first 48 hours in Montego Bay, we noticed signs of a recent storm—palm trees were partially stripped, and some rooftops were undergoing repairs.

But beyond some cosmetic impacts, hospitality is up and running – and normal.

At the S Hotel Montego Bay, our first stop, the restaurants and amenities are fully operational, guests are soaking up the sunshine, the jerk chicken is spicy, the reggae is jamming, and staff couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome people back.

Gedeon & Stewart sound off

Spotted in Jamaica on Saturday – attending Gary Sadler’s 60th birthday party at Plantation Cove – was Zeina Gedeon, CEO of Trevello Travel Group, who commended Jamaica’s hotels and government for doing a “phenomenal” job in reopening the destination, so quickly.

“Honestly, you’d never know there was a hurricane,” said Gedeon, who’s staying at Sandals Dunn’s River this week.

Adam Stewart, chairman of Sandals Resorts International, was also on the scene at Sadler’s birthday bash.

“Jamaica is a bigger island than people realize,” he told PAX. “The cone of the hurricane was ten miles wide. Jamaica is more than 150 miles wide. The hurricane’s force winds were a little more than 20 miles out.”

“Parts of Jamaica got hit, but the lion’s share of the island – Ocho Rios, Negril, Port Antonio were completely untouched…The country is beyond ready.”

Five of Sandals’ resorts in Jamaica are open – “looking better than they did before,” Stewart said.

Sandals Dunn’s River, Sandals Royal Plantation, Sandals Ochi, Sandals Negril and Beaches Negril are up and running, while Sandals Montego Bay, Sandals Royal Caribbean and Sandals South Coast are expected to reopen May 30, 2026.

Open for business

According to Minister Bartlett, 80 per cent of Jamaica’s electricity supply and water distribution has been restored since Melissa made landfall.

Tourists have also been steadily returning in recent weeks, even ahead of Jamaica’s official reopening date.

According to Bartlett, Jamaica welcomed 300,000 visitors over the past four weeks, including roughly 7,000 tourists who arrived at Montego Bay’s Sangster International Airport on Saturday (Dec. 13).

“[Melissa] blew us about and damaged the landscape a bit, but never managed to damage the spirit of Jamaica and the capacity of Jamaica to respond, and respond well,” said Minister Bartlett.

Speaking to PAX later on, Minister Bartlett outlined exactly what Jamaica’s restart looks like.

“All tourism destinations are open and ready for business,” he said.

Negril saw “minimal impact,” and all hotels there are open except for Grand Princess and Royalton Negril.

Montego Bay is ready, with resorts opening. The airport is back in good condition and cruise ships are returning, Bartlett said. 

Here, Dreams Rose Hall is in the process of reconstruction – which will be completed by early to late 2026. In fact, Hyatt has extended the suspension of operations at seven of its Jamaica resorts following damage sustained. 

Bahia Principe Luxury Runaway, meanwhile, is closed indefinitely. (For a complete list of hotel reopenings, click here).

Ocho Rios, where attractions like Dunn's River Falls await, is “100 per cent back,” the Minister said.

Cruise activity in that region also reached pre-Melissa levels over past week, he added. Falmouth’s cruise scene has also normalized.

Kingston and Port Antonio “were never touched” by the hurricane, noted Bartlett. Meanwhile, Jamaica’s South Coast will officially open this Saturday (Dec. 20)

“We may have to wait a bit for Sandals South Coast [to reopen], but the rest of the area is ready,” he said.

Canada “stable & growing”

The JTB’s Angella Bennett said visitation numbers from Canada to Jamaica are “stable and growing.”

“Canada has been a backbone for us,” Bennett told PAX. “It’s our second-largest source market – and Canadians have rallied. We saw it during our Black Friday Sale. There’s a strong pick-up [in bookings] for late December, into January, February and March.”

Additionally: “I can’t thank the tour operators enough,” she said. “Air Canada Vacations, WestJet Vacations, Sunwing…They’ve all rallied to support our communities.”

“Send your customers here”

Jamaica’s hotels, meanwhile, are emphasizing a full reopening, without compromise.

All seven of RIU Hotels & Resorts’ properties in Jamaica, for example, are now open, RIU Jamaica’s Director of Sales Niurka Garcia-Linton told PAX.

Notably, the brand’s Ocho Rios property never closed, as it had to continue accommodating guests who were unable to secure flights out of the country when the storm hit, she said.

And when RIU says “open,” is means “fully open,” said Garcia-Linton.

“Entertainment is back and all à la carte restaurants are open,” she said. “We had some small damage on the beach in Montego Bay. We lost some sand, but we were able to get it back prior to opening the hotel.”

Garcia-Linton praised Sunwing Vacations, Riu’s exclusive partner, for taking the lead in supporting the chain’s restart.

Additionally, every RIU hotel in Jamaica is fully staffed, she said.

“The staff are so grateful to be back at work. The entire atmosphere at the hotel is fantastic,” she said.

Some guests are wondering if they should visit, especially after seeing the devastation in media reports, she added.

“But they should come. They should not feel guilty. Coming and having fun in Jamaica will be the best and fastest way to get the economy up and running.”

Nersi Rodriguez, director of sales at Iberostar Rose Hall – a three-hotel complex in Montego Bay that has also fully reopened – echoed that sentiment. Iberostar's operations, too, haven't stopped since Melissa. 

“The best way we can contribute to the island is to ensure people have jobs,” Rodriguez said. “The Jamaican people have a strength in them. This is just another testimony to the strength of the people and the resilience of the industry.”

“The best way to help Jamaica right now is to send your customers here.”

Keep following PAX for more on-the-ground coverage of Jamaica’s post-hurricane reopening.

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