Jamaica to host Caribbean Travel Marketplace in 2019
KINGSTON, Jamaica — Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett says Jamaica will host the next Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s (CHTA) annual Caribbean Travel Marketplace (CTM), scheduled for the first quarter of 2019.
A release from his ministry explained that the Caribbean Travel Marketplace is the largest and most prominent tourism marketing event in the Caribbean, which serves as an important platform to enhance exchanges between tourism suppliers from around the world.
Bartlett made the announcement following a successful bid to CHTA’s CEO Frank Comito in San Juan, Puerto Rico earlier this week.
“I am very pleased to announce that Jamaica will once again play host to an important tourism event, which will see thousands of delegates, stakeholders and investors in attendance from across the region. It is an incredible achievement for our country and I am certain we will reap significant benefits,” said Bartlett.
The CTM gives thousands of suppliers the opportunity to meet face-to-face with wholesalers from the Caribbean over the course of two days. It showcases hotels, tourist boards, destination management companies, tour operators, airlines among others related to the travel industry.
While in Puerto Rico, the minister also participated in a press conference where he gave an update on the Global Resilience Centre, which should be situated at the University of the West Indies, Mona — with oversight from United Nations World Tourism Organisation, the Caribbean Tourism Organisation, the World Travel & Tourism Council and CHTA.
The centre, which was recently endorsed by the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association, will be designed to assist affected states to combat disruptive events and strengthen capacity to predict and manage crises. It will also include a Sustainable Tourism Observatory, which will assist preparedness, management and recovery of crises which impact tourism and threaten economies and livelihoods.
Bartlett also announced plans to host another international conference in Montego Bay, with special focus on Small and Medium Tourism Enterprises in January 2019.
The minister is accompanied by Executive Director of the Tourism Product Development Company, Dr Andrew Spencer in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He is expected to return to the island on February 03.
