Jamaica is aiming to boost Canadian tourist arrivals after striking a partnership deal with leading tour operator Transat Holidays.
It follows Jamaica minister of tourism Edmund Bartlett’s trade mission to Canada where he met with representatives from several Canadian operators including Air Canada Vacations, Westjet Vacations, and Sunwing.
"The meeting with Transat was important because of the known influence they have on the Canadian travel market. This winter, Transat will operate flights from: Toronto, Montreal and Halifax and they are known to add capacity and gateways as demand increases," Bartlett said.
"We intend to do our part by expanding the product offering and highlighting Jamaica’s value proposition, to increase our arrivals."
Results from the discussions will influence Jamaica Tourist Board’s marketing strategy targeting Canada ahead of the 2017 season, Bartlett said.
"In my first term as minister, we grew the Canadian market by over 100%. Upon returning in March of this year, I became acutely aware that the Canadian market suffered a decline of 6.8% last year, and there were further declines this year, so these meetings in Canada were a crucial part of our renewed action plan," Bartlett said in a statement during last week’s visit.
"I have mandated the Jamaica Tourist Board to revamp their marketing efforts in this regard, to ensure that we achieve our growth targets."
