Travel in Jamaica

Windy weather in Jamaica caused a Carnival Cruise Line ship to ram into a pier earlier this week.

Southwest Airlines customers can now book the low-cost carrier's flight schedule through November 2, 2024.

The Tyrall Club has officially unveiled its brand new spa, The Spa at Tryall, earlier this month. The private luxury property in Montego Bay, Jamaica is shifting its amenities to include more wellness-leaning offerings to cater to guests looking to truly unwind and find inner peace while on vacation.

Plans are in full force for the highly anticipated second staging of the Global Tourism Resilience Conference in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Taking place over a two-day period, the Global Tourism Resilience Conference will include panel discussions, networking opportunities, presentations and lively debates on matters of building resilience in tourism. This group of experts in their collective fields will gather to collaboratively discuss issues that are central to future-proofing travel and tourism to various disruptions moving forward. Global tourism resilience will once again take centre stage with key experts on building resilience in the industry. As tourism destinations continue to recover, it is critical that   tenacity is a focus of planning and development to future proof the industry from any potential shock,” said Founder of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC) and Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett.

During February, Jamaica comes alive with the sound of reggae, in a celebration of all things related to the music genre intrinsic to the island’s vibrant culture. From Reggae Month festival to Bob Marley’s Birthday, and the premiere of the Bob Marley: One Love biopic on 14th February, there is no better time for travellers to retrace the footsteps of the reggae royalty to forge a deeper connection with his story.

The Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival returns with more than 30 performances including Pure Jazz, Kingdom Gospel, Caribbean Fusion and World Beats, from April 30 to May 12, 2024. This year will see headline performances from pop rock legends Air Supply, along with Davido, Machel Montano, Samara Joy, Beres Hammond, Jon Secada and Chloe Bailey.

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett met with the owners of the Pinero Group, which owns the prominent Spanish Hotel chain, Bahia Principe, in Madrid, Spain to discuss the status of their multifaceted resort development in St. Ann. The Group owns the Bahia Principe Grand Jamaica, Jamaica’s largest hotel, with 1,350 rooms. The meeting follows a formal presentation of their development plans to the Prime Minister, the Most Honourable Andrew Holness and other officials last year, at the Office of the Prime Minister. The project will be one of the largest resort and real estate projects ever executed in the Caribbean and Latin America.

Following a productive courtesy call between the Ministry of Tourism and World Bank representatives on Tuesday (January 16), Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett has reported steady strides regarding the Ministry’s Multi-Dimensional Impact Assessment Study, which will evaluate the economic impact as well as other implications of adding 20,000 new hotel rooms over the next 10 years. The meeting, led by World Bank Country Director for the Caribbean, Lilia Burunciuc, saw the team providing insights into their ongoing study titled “Future of Tourism in the Caribbean.” This study aims to empower regional markets to enhance competitiveness, improve connectivity, and overcome barriers to tourism growth. 

If you're hoping to catch both flights and feelings this Valentine's Day, consider booking a trip to a resort or hotel offering a romantic package tailor-made for two. After all, nothing stokes the flame of a relationship quite like travel does, whether your partnership is relatively new or decades old.

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett (2nd left) presents a special gift to members of the World Bank team: Director for the Caribbean, Lilia Burunciuc (2nd right); Programme Leader, Nataliya Mylenko (1st left); and Senior Operations Analyst, Jhanelle-Rae Bowie, following a high-level meeting alongside other members of the Ministry’s team.

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett is leading a collaborative effort between public and private sector stakeholders to build capacity and systematically address the pain points in the tourism industry.  Minister Bartlett made the disclosure following a meeting with industry partners, which he led in conjunction with the president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA), Robin Russell, yesterday (January 11) at the AC Marriott Hotel. 

As the calendar flips to a new year, Unique Vacations, Inc. (UVI) – an affiliate of the worldwide representative for Sandals Resorts and Beaches Resorts – inaugurates 2024 as “The Year of More” at an energizing Global Sales Conference designed to celebrate the outstanding achievements of the travel advisor community and reinforce its crucial role within the ecosystem of tourism for the Caribbean at large. The first of its kind since 2019, the event was held between Sandals Dunn’s River and Sandals Ochi, and united esteemed Caribbean government officials, Sandals Resorts executives, and over 200 members of Unique Vacations global sales force for a weekend of reflection, strategic alignment, and gathering momentum in the direction of selling the coveted Caribbean.

Whether your kid loves soaring above rainforest canopies or will happily spend the day splashing in the waves, there's something for them in Jamaica – the island nation is not just a playground for adults.

Emmy-winning travel expert Samantha Brown is constantly on the move. The host of Samantha Brown’s Places to Loveon PBS, which recently kicked off its seventh season, spends more than 150 days a year crisscrossing the globe exploring cities big and small.

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​It’s cold out there. A Caribbean getaway has never sounded better. We get it.

Even among the many extraordinary islands and countries that make up the Caribbean, Jamaica stands out. Its beaches are a dream. Its food is a point of national pride. Its forests and rivers are exotic and otherworldly. And its cultural influence on the world stage far outweighs its diminutive size, from Rastafarianism to Reggae, Bob Marley to Usain Bolt, Sensimilla to Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. Despite its global renown, you’ll never get the true beat of its rhythm until you visit.

I grew up with African food, but in a Lebanese way.Let’s take my mum’s okra stew — the African version is filled with fried fish, cow foot, sheep tail, oxtail and beef all in one stew — while Lebanese cooking is quite simplistic and based around fresh salads and grills, that sort of stuff. So, the stew she’d make would have none of that, just beef, and it wouldn’t be made with palm oil. It was African food but in a tame way, because of my Lebanese dad. Whenever my mum makes it, I go absolutely mental — it warms up your belly, is full of good nutrients and is a different flavour to anything you’ve ever had before. My grandma once made it in Freetown, Sierra Leone, with fufu (pounded cassava root and green plantains, rolled into small balls) — proper authentic. I choked on a fish bone but it was the best meal I’ve ever had.

Perfect for trendsetters and taste explorers alike, the plant-based revolution, continues to grow every year, with evermore people choosing to trial and embrace this way of life for both their wellbeing, and the good of the planet!  A flavour-packed adventure, the Rastafarian Ital cuisine is like a carnival for your taste buds, blending vibrant flavours with alkaline and protein-rich ingredients like callaloo, lentils, and beans, which play key roles in these recipes. Rastafarians choose to follow a natural, plant-based diet for reasons including increased energy levels, minimal additives, and a deeper connection to Earth.

With dozens of luxurious all-inclusive resorts and some of the most popular attractions in the Caribbean, a trip to Jamaica can be pricey. But it doesn’t have to be. 

Set between the beauty of the Caribbean Sea and the craggy ridges of the Blue Mountain range, Jamaica’s attractions range from hidden waterfalls and white-sand beaches to historical architecture, great food and unique ecosystems.