Raft captains, craft vendors lament limited promotion of world-famous attraction

Raft captains and craft vendors at the Blue Lagoon in Portland say more needs to be done to promote the world-famous attraction, a sentiment which is also shared by some tourists who described the area as one of the island’s best-kept secrets.

The owners of rafts and craft stalls, some of whom have been operating from that location for nearly three decades, are also clamouring for the reopening of the Blue Lagoon Restaurant which, they said, helped to pull hundreds of tourists and Jamaicans to that side of this eastern parish.

However, since the restaurant closed following the passage of Hurricane Ivan in 2004, the operators say the bus loads of visitors who once came a-calling are no more.

“Now, when visitors come to the Blue Lagoon and we introduce rafting to them it is the first time they are finding out that rafting is offered on the Blue Lagoon, and so we need here to be better promoted,” said the sole female raft operator, who gave her name only as Julienne.

The Blue Lagoon is a natural lagoon, situated roughly seven miles east of Port Antonio. The deep lagoon was once thought to be bottomless, but divers have since determined its depth to be around 180 feet.

The most striking feature, however, is its mystical blue colour which changes throughout the day, depending on the angle of the sun.

The operators, however, say business would have been much better for them if a lot of the bigger hotels across the island were to offer the Blue Lagoon as part of their tour package.

“If the hotels could introduce the Blue Lagoon to their guests it would help to send some much-needed business our way,” Julienne added.

President of the Blue Lagoon Alliance Association Collin Beckford told the Jamaica Observer North East that a lot of the tour buses stopped coming following the closure of the restaurant and bar, which was one of the main attractions.

“When the restaurant was in operation, all major tour operators would bring guests here, but now we don’t see that happening any more,” he said.

Beckford explained that the alliance was formed by a 22-member-strong group of concerned vendors, raftsmen and boat operators who are getting themselves organised for the recently proposed development of that area.

“Here is poised for development and we want to get ourselves organised so we can benefit from it when that happens,” said Beckford, who has been selling craft at the lagoon for more than 30 years.

The operators and vendors said business is very slow all year round and rarely picks up on holidays.

A group of first-time tourists from Uruguay said they only found out about the Blue Lagoon in passing, and immediately decided on making the trip from their hotel in St Ann.

“Here really needs more promotion because we didn’t know that this place existed until we arrived in Jamaica,” said Rodriquo Blas, shortly after the group completed a boat ride on the lagoon.

Fellow visitor Laura Lista said if it was better promoted more tourists would gravitate to that type of natural beauty.

“It took us three hours to get here from our hotel, but it was well worth it,” Lista said as she revelled in the scenery.

Meanwhile, the raft operators said they want Government to step in and regulate their trade as it would better help their business.

“We would certainly get more customers,” one raft captain said, adding that “some day we sit down here fi the whole day and we don’t get a single customer.”

The raft operators said they were optimistic that things would have been better for them when development plans were announced for the facility.

Last October, Michael Lee-Chin’s Portland Holdings announced that Geejam Collections was to manage the Blue Lagoon as well as its other leisure properties in Portland.

Geejam said under the arrangement with Portland Holdings, Geejam will complete the development of the Trident Hotel, The Trident Castle and the Blue Lagoon.

“They said they were going to make some shops here and they would fix up the place and put in some parking lots and we were really looking forward to that so some life can come back to Portland,” another raft captain said.

The operators say they also do not get any business from the cruise ships when they dock in the resort town of Port Antonio, as the tourists are often bused to Ocho Rios.

Julienne recalled that when she was a little girl she would see a lot of tourists visiting the area.

Julienne, who also sells refreshments at the lagoon, having taken over the business from her mother, said she opted to learn to operate a raft to supplement the meagre income she now makes from selling drinks and snacks.

“There isn’t a lot of jobs here, and so I have to try something to make a living,” she said, adding that it is her dream to one day own a raft, as soon as she can afford to save the $12,000 it costs to procure one.

Meanwhile, the raft operators said a ride along the lagoon offers even more than rafting on the Rio Grande as there is more to see on the 30-minute trip.

At the same time, Beckford said many Portlanders, himself included, are looking forward to the reopening of Dragon Bay Resort, to lessen the high levels of unemployment in the parish.

“We are longing to see the day the Dragon Bay Hotel opens because it used to employ up to 200 people,” Beckford said.