PHOTO BY PAUL REID -
A group of tourists watch as waves pounded the coastline along the Gloucester Avenue Hip Strip on Sunday morning. This group was among dozens of people who gathered to watch the waves that were up to 10 feet high at times.
WESTERN BUREAU: THE JAMAICA Hotel and Tourist Association says the tourist industry has suffered no significant negative impact from Hurricane Ivan.
"All the reports we are getting show that the hotels suffered only minor damage and I expect all to be up and running within a week or, at the maximum, two weeks," Godfrey Dyer, president of the JHTA, told The Gleaner. "Most hotels and guesthouses only had to contend with fallen trees, and the cleaning-up process has already begun."
Also, the JHTA is reporting that although there have been some cancellations in bookings because of the hurricane, it expects bookings to rebound steadily within the next two weeks. "We have waived the penalties for cancellation in bookings to allow people to re-book. Although bookings have slipped, we expect by October, occupancy levels at the hotels should be looking good."
OPTIMISM RUNNING HIGH
With regard to the cruise shipping sector of the tourist industry, optimism is also running high that the sector has not suffered any serious blows from Hurricane Ivan. David Lindo, chairman of the Cruise Ship Committee of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce, said the cruise ship terminal was fully operational and he envisaged no other hurdles to the resumption of normality in the cruise business.
"There is no reason why Montego Bay shouldn't start seeing the cruise ship calling at its ports on Tuesday and Wednesday," Mr. Lindo said. "Because of the choppy seas, the visitors will not be able to do water sports, but several attractions are unscathed by the hurricane and ready to accommodate them."
Mr. Lindo said that to-date, no cruise line has cancelled planned visits to Jamaica.