Return of cruise tourism to Cayman could benefit Jamaica

Local tourism stakeholders say they are eagerly watching developments in the Cayman Islands where the return of cruise shipping for 2022 could be a significant boost for Jamaica.

The stakeholders, who include attractions owners, transport operators, craft traders, and duty-free merchants, said there is also a good reason for optimism.

In a recent meeting among cruise line executives, the all-powerful Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association and Cayman Islands officials said the return of ships to Grand Cayman was at the top of the agenda.

“All the signs are pointing to cruise shipping returning to the Cayman Islands, which by extension, should see an uptick in our cruise arrivals. Grand Cayman is on the same western itinerary as Jamaica,” explained a Senior Director of the Royal Shop chain of duty-free stores, Ravi Daswani.

“The Western Caribbean is like a triangle and when one part of the triangle is missing it affects the other two,” he added.

Daswani said the meeting on February 2, between cruise officials and the Cayman Government, was an important prelude of a possible breakthrough, bringing cruise ships back to the Cayman Islands for the first time in nearly two years.

Chief Executive Officer of Chukka Caribbean Adventures, Jamaica, Marc Melville, told JIS News that a return of cruise ships to the Cayman Islands could conceivably see a return of the Royal Caribbean Oasis class vessels, the biggest cruise ships in the world, to Jamaica.

“We could see ships like Allure of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, Oasis of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas and possibly the cruise line's newest and biggest ship [Wonder of the Seas] in Jamaican waters for 2022,” Melville noted.

“Other than Harmony of the Seas, we have not been seeing any of the Royal Caribbean premiere vessels because of the continued suspension of cruise shipping in the Cayman Islands.”

Cayman Islands Tourism Minister, Kenneth Bryan, in a statement, underscored the point that at the top of the list “are our health and safety protocols that will allow cruise ships to return while keeping our community safe.”

For Chief Strategist/Senior Advisor in the Jamaica Ministry of Tourism, Delano Seiveright, there are sufficient reasons to believe that Jamaica would see more ships if the Cayman situation got cleared up, “it is our view that things will eventually work out,” he said.

- JIS News

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