“To be, or not to be, that is the question.” Hamlet asked it of life itself. Our industry faces a smaller but no less consequential version: to be, or not to be an ambassador for Jamaica.

When Hurricane Melissa struck last October, our Diaspora answered that question without hesitation. In their communities, their workplaces, and online, Jamaicans abroad refused to let a story of damage become the story of their country. They told the world that Jamaica was standing, recovering, and ready to welcome visitors again. The Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett has credited that advocacy as a critical force in countering negative perceptions and sustaining interest in the destination, observing that every time someone speaks positively about Jamaica, he/she strengthens the country’s resilience.

The results bear him out. In the first quarter of 2026, just five months after the storm, Jamaica welcomed more than one million visitors and earned US$956 million. If our Diaspora can carry Jamaica’s name with that conviction, so can those of us whose businesses depend on it. Every hotel on this island markets something. Most market a property: its rooms, its restaurants, and its rate. Many of our members go further and lead with Jamaica itself, and they do so proudly. As we rebuild and prepare the destination for its next phase of growth, that practice deserves to become universal across our industry.

My argument is simple. When a hotel sells Jamaica, it is not being generous, it is being strategic. The destination is the first purchase a traveller makes; the hotel is the second. Every property on this island benefits when that first decision is made in our favour, and every property is exposed when it is not.

Travellers choose Jamaica

No visitor arrives at our airports without first deciding that Jamaica is worth the trip. That decision is shaped by what they see, hear, and believe about the country — its people, its food, its music, its safety, and its ease. A resort can deliver an outstanding stay, but it cannot by itself create the desire to come here. The destination does that.

That is why the guest who falls in love with Jamaica matters so much. That guest comes back, tells friends and family to come, and on each return explores a little more — a new parish, a new attraction, a new restaurant, perhaps a new property. Their loyalty sustains the entire sector, from the resort where they first stayed to the tour operator, the craft vendor, and the cook down the road. Every hotel that tells the Jamaica story helps to create that guest.

The benefits are tangible, and they are shared

Discovery now happens in the answer, not the click. Nearly three in five travellers have not settled on a destination when they begin planning, and they increasingly ask search engines and artificial intelligence (AI) assistants to help them decide. Those tools build their answers from what is published about a place. A 2026 Ahrefs study found that when Google displays an AI-generated summary, clicks to the top-ranked website fall by more than half. No single property can shape that answer alone. Hundreds of hotels consistently telling a current, credible Jamaica story can, and every one of them benefits when Jamaica is the answer.

Airlift follows destination demand. Airlines do not add seats to a hotel; they add seats to a country. Sustained, visible demand for Jamaica as a whole is what persuades carriers to restore and grow capacity, and every property benefits from those seats.

Value is built at destination level. Travellers pay more for places they desire. A stronger Jamaica brand supports rates across the board, from the largest resorts to the smallest guest houses. Hotels that market the destination are protecting the value of their own rooms.

Visitors who know Jamaica spend in Jamaica. A guest who arrives curious about our towns, our cuisine, our heritage, and our people is far more likely to leave the property, hire a local driver, visit an attraction, eat at a community restaurant, and buy from a Jamaican craftsperson. That is how tourism spend reaches communities.

Smaller operators depend on it. Our boutique hotels, villas, and community-based operators do not always have global marketing budgets. They rely on the destination being top of mind. When larger properties lift the Jamaica brand, they lift those who cannot do it alone.

A united message is a resilient one. When disruption comes, and in our region it will, a market that already associates Jamaica with warmth, quality, and confidence is far quicker to return. That reservoir of goodwill is built in good times, by all of us, every day.

Shared responsibility, not shifted responsibility

Let me be equally clear about what this argument is not. It is not a suggestion that hotels should pick up a responsibility that belongs to the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB). The JTB holds the national mandate to market this destination, and the sector expects it to lead with clarity, consistency, and measurable results. That expectation does not change.

What I am proposing is that destination marketing works best as a partnership with defined roles. The JTB sets the national narrative, invests in the markets, and builds the brand. Hotels amplify that narrative through every channel they own. Each makes the other more effective, neither can do the job alone.

In practical terms, that partnership could look like this: hotels leading their campaigns with Jamaica before their own brand; the JTB equipping partners with current destination assets, messaging, and co-operative marketing opportunities that make amplification easy; properties showcasing the communities and experiences beyond their gates; and both sides agreeing on a small set of shared measures so we can see what the combined effort delivers.

Jamaica matters

Many of our members already do this well, and they deserve recognition for it. Every one of us has a personal investment in Brand Jamaica. It is the name our guests write on their itineraries, the reason our team members have careers in this industry, and the place we call home. When we see its promotion as a shared responsibility rather than someone else’s job, we strengthen the destination that sustains us all as we bring the remaining inventory back and prepare for the next phase of growth.

Whatever logo appears on a booking confirmation, the guest is ultimately coming to Jamaica. Their decision to come, and to come back, is the foundation every one of our businesses stands on. Hamlet spent five acts deliberating, Jamaica cannot afford that luxury.

To be, or not to be Jamaica’s ambassador is a question with only one answer for anyone who earns a living from this destination. Jamaica is the brand we all share, it is time we all sold it.

O’Brian Heron is president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association.

O’Brian Heron.