Janet Silvera, Senior Tourism Writer

John Issa, chairman of SuperClubs. - Rudolph Brown/Chief Photographer

LONDON, England:

"Bullish" is the buzz word being used to describe the forecast for 2007 tourist arrivals, according to Jamaican hoteliers, ground handlers and tour operators attending the World Travel Market (WTM) at Excel in London, England.

"Forward bookings for SuperClubs Jamaica and elsewhere are much stronger than last year," John Issa, that hotel chain's chairman, told The Gleaner.

Mr. Issa, who operates eight hotels totalling 1,778 rooms, said his only concern is the U.S. passport issue which, if not varied, could affect last-minute travellers.

A very attractive destination

"Jamaica remains a very attractive destination and the industry would have been twice as big if it had not been for the social upheavals in the last decades," said the tourism expert, who is credited for creating the revolutionary all-inclusive industry 30 years ago.

Mr. Issa's comments were cemented by Half Moon's managing director, Richard Whitfield, and Air Jamaica's senior vice-president of marketing, Paul Pennicook.

Mr. Whitfield said he spent two days last week meeting with tour operators and the projection for Jamaica is "bullish". The same is indicated in the bookings for his 398-room Montego Bay hotel. "Our forward bookings are as good as 2006 which makes us very happy because we anticipate much higher room rates."

Like the rest of the island, Half Moon gets most of its guests from North America, but has spent the last 12 months working on the U.K. market, an area it expects to see tremendous growth from, said Mr. Whitfield.

Checks made with the national airline, Air Jamaica, also show a very positive outlook for 2007, particularly the first quarter of the year.

Mr. Pennicook told The Gleaner that business was "nicely up". The airline flies from 10 gateways in the United States, as well as Toronto and London.

The industry is even more optimistic with the slated opening of more than 700 rooms at the Bahia Principe Hotel at Pear Tree Bottom, St. Ann, in December and the 350 rooms at the Iberostar in Rose Hall in March 2007, together adding just over 1,000 rooms to the already robust inventory.

Rated as the second largest trade show in the world, WTM brings together worldwide buyers and sellers from every sector of the tourist industry.