UPTON, St Ann — According to Arlenes Garcia, the director of sales and marketing for Latin America at Unique Vacations, one of the significant aspects of the Sandals Latin American Travel Agents Golf Tournament is marketing Jamaica as a major tourism attraction.

This year’s competition, which attracted 98 golfers from 14 countries, finished on Saturday at the Sandals Golf and Country Club in Upton Estate, St Ann.

Beaches Ocho Rios hosted the travel agents as the resort operator continues to showcase its splendour to the Latin American market.

“Let me start by saying that the Caribbean and Jamaica are our home and so we are so happy to be back. We are so pleased to be here spending time with our travel advisors showing them the product,” Garcia told the Jamaica Observer.

“We had the opportunity to visit the four resorts in the area of Ocho Rios. So we went to Sandals Dunn’s River, our new resort; we also visited Sandals Royal Plantation; we visited Beaches Ocho Rios, and our host resort which is Sandals Ochi. By being here gives the opportunity to actually see the resorts and experience the Sandals product because seeing is believing.

“So when they [travel advisors] go back home, this is what they are going to talk about. Also to be here playing golf on this fantastic golf course is the opportunity for them to actually grow that niche. Also for us as a team, this is the opportunity to engage with them and be together developing the opportunities in the region to bring tourism to this beautiful island,” Garcia explained.

“Year over year, we see the increase of the tourism from the region into the Caribbean, especially Jamaica. We have the airlift provided by airlines that are our partners such as American Airlines or Copa; we also have LATAM; and we have Avianca.

“These airline partners that we work together with…[give the] opportunity to increase the number of seats from Latin America to the Caribbean and to countries such as Jamaica where we have the most resorts,” the director said.

Garcia said a major aspect of the golf tournament is how the various moving parts all work together to reach a common objective.

“We are one team. This event wouldn’t be possible without the help and support, first of all, of the resort personnel which we consider our family, and all the press, as you guys that are here supporting the event.

“When you deliver the message of our team doing this type of event, you guys are promoting our product. You guys are promoting the life at Sandals, beautiful resorts, this fantastic golf course and everything that we do day by day and so for me, Sandals has been a career and the opportunity to grow,” she ended.