By Andrew Green, Staff Reporter SO FAR, this winter tourist season, hotels have not been pressured to discount their rates, says Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) President Godfrey Dyer.
Jamaica had its best year in tourism earnings and arrivals in 2000. But civil unrest followed by the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States, Jamaica's main market, dealt the industry a severe blow in 2001.
But in the January to November period of this year, Jamaica hosted 1.21 million visitors, according to the latest figures from the Jamaica Tourist Board.
This was a 6.1 per cent increase over the 2002 level, 3.6 per cent above the 2001 level and a marginal 0.4 per cent above the 2000 level.
The comparison with 2000 is useful as that was the best year for the industry, Mr. Dyer said.
"It was a good recovery," he said of the industry performance this year. "We have recovered fully."
Gross visitor expenditure for the first half of this year is estimated at US$643 million, an increase of 10 per cent over last year.
The Social and Economic Survey of Jamaica for the year 2002 shows that the country earned US$1.18 billion, with 1.27 million stop-over tourists for that year. In 2001, Jamaica earned US$1.23 billion and had 1.28 million stop-over tourists. In the year 2000, the country earned $1.33 billion, with 1.32 million tourists.
Total tourist arrivals is different from stop-over arrivals, but stop-overs, visitors staying more than a day in the country, represent the bulk of industry spending.
"The recovery this year has been spectacular," Mr. Dyer said. The industry had to cut room rates to encourage tourists to visit the island from 2001. At the start of the winter tourist season last year, Mr. Dyer had told a Gleaner forum in Montego Bay that heavy discounting of hotel rates had significantly reduced profits for the hotel sector following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
"Last year we were discounting," he said on Friday. But income has increased this year, based on the latest data.
Tour operators asked hotels to reduce their rates last winter, and they complied, he said. The cuts continued into the summer though at a declining pace.
Room rates are now at about the same level as last year winter, before the discounting started.
With stop-over arrivals growth of 6.1 per cent this year and a growth target of 6-7 per cent next year, the industry now appears set on a very positive path.
"We have not been asked to cut rates," he said. "We are hoping to go through this winter without heavily discounted rates."
The winter season started on December 15.
