Strong start to tourist season

The Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) has reported a strong start in tourist arrivals since January.



According to the JTB, in January there were 148, 886 stopover arrivals or a 4.2 percent increase over the similar period last year.



It said preliminary figures for February reflect that the growth trend continued with a 1.3 percent increase.



However, the JTB said things have been even better in the first week of March.



Preliminary figures for the first week of March show a 12.9 percent increase over the corresponding period last year.



The Director of Tourism, John Lynch said Jamaica’s start to 2009 is heartening, given the challenging economic times.



He said there are great expectations with the establishment of new hotels and attractions and the expansion of others.



Last year, Jamaica recorded a 3.9 percent growth in stopover arrivals, with a total of 1.769M visitors.

The United States, which is Jamaica’s primary source market, provided the most visitors with just over 1.5, 000, 000 visitors.