VZCZCXRO4506
PP RUEHGR
DE RUEHKG #0302/01 1101957
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 201957Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY KINGSTON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7526
INFO RUCNCOM/EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE
RUEHMD/AMEMBASSY MADRID 0324
RUEHUB/USINT HAVANA 0132
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0561
RUEHME/AMEMBASSY MEXICO 2954
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KINGSTON 000302 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR WHA/CAR (ACADIEUX) (VDEPIRRO) (WSMITH) 
SANTO DOMINGO FOR FCS AND FAS 
TREASURY FOR ERIN NEPHEW 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: ECON ENRG SENV EAIR SOCI ETRD ASEC SNAR KCRM
TRSY, XL, JM, CU, SP 
SUBJECT: JAMAICA: TOURISM SECTOR TRENDS 
 
REF: A) KINGSTON 269 
B) KINGSTON 245 
C) KINGSTON 223 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY.  Emboffs met with Minister of Tourism Edmond 
Bartlett on March 31 to discuss trends in the sector, 
including security precautions in response to rising crime, 
the future of tourism competition from Cuba, and the issue of 
airlift in light of Air Jamaica?s upcoming divestiture.  In a 
separate meeting, Bruce Nobles, President and CEO of Air 
Jamaica, discussed the airlines? appeal to members of the 
Jamaican Diaspora and its changes to reduce costs and increase 
profitability.  END SUMMARY. 
Minister Praises US and Its Market 
--------------------------------- 
¶2. (SBU) Bartlett praised the continued strong support from 
the USA to Jamaica and its importance as the dominant source 
of visitors to the island.  He opined that the USA has 
supplanted the UK as Jamaica?s paramount partner, describing 
?a deep and abiding relationship worthy of nurturing.?  In 
regard to current global economic downturn, he said, ?No 
matter how battered and bruised the U.S. economy is, it 
remains our legacy market and our best market...and we will 
maintain a major marketing presence there.? 
Tourism Is Lifeblood of Economy 
------------------------------- 
¶3.  (SBU) Bartlett stated that the Caribbean, and by 
extension, Jamaica, is the most tourism-dependent region in 
the world.  He said, ?Tourism is the lifeblood for the 
economy,? adding, ?tourist arrivals drove demand for other 
industries and were a catalyst for agriculture, manufacturing, 
information technology and energy.?  He opined, ?People must 
understand the dynamics of the sector ? if the product suffers 
it can be devastating to the entire economy, especially in a 
context where the cost structure of agriculture makes it 
difficult to compete.?  He was quick to point out that Jamaica 
was still experiencing strong arrivals despite the global 
recession, and maintained that although there could be a 
downturn later this year, he was not expecting a steep 
decline. 
Visitors:  Facts and Figures 
---------------------------- 
¶4. (SBU) Total visitor arrivals were 2,856,172 for 2008.  This 
figure is down slightly (.08 percent) from 2007.  The decline 
came from cruise ship arrivals, which fell 7.7 percent; other 
stopover visits actually rose 3.9 percent for the year. 
Jamaica has four cruise ships slots on the North coast: two in 
Montego Bay, and two in Ocho Rios.  Plans for a new wharf in 
the port town of Falmouth would add two new slots for the 
newly created Genesis-class ships, capable of carrying 5,400 
guests (reftels).  The new wharf, expected to be completed in 
May, 2010, will allow for more than 10,800 new visitors plus 
crew for days in which ships make a port call.  Jamaica is 
also seeing a significant increase in visitors from Canada, 
which Bartlett says is a major growth market. 
Air Jamaica Privatization 
------------------------- 
¶5. (SBU) When asked about any possible impact of the 
privatization of Air Jamaica on the sector, he said that it 
does not matter who owns the airline, as long as airlift is 
not compromised.  He emphasized that strong marketing, a 
positive brand, and airlift security are the core of the 
country?s tourism model.  ?Like most Jamaicans a part of me is 
emotionally tied to Air Jamaica, but we must face the harsh 
reality that we cannot, as a country, afford to carry the 
financial losses anymore.?  NOTE: Air Jamaica provides 
significant cargo lift, as well as bringing 32 percent of all 
tourists to Jamaica.  End Note.  He added that Air Jamaica?s 
niche is in serving the Jamaica Diaspora community. 
Air Jamaica?s CEO 
----------------- 
¶6. (SBU) Bruce Nobles, President and CEO of Air Jamaica, 
confirmed to Econoff on April 9 that 50 percent of the 
airlines clients are ethnic Jamaicans.  He said since he 
started running the airline (reftels) in October, 2008, he has 
increased load factor from about 60 percent to 73 percent.  He 
said the airline also pulled out of destinations such as 
Atlanta and Miami which were not cost effective and increased 
flights out of the more profitable route of Fort Lauderdale. 
He said his efforts at restructuring had generated renewed 
interest by potential buyers of the airline, which he hopes 
 
KINGSTON 00000302  002 OF 002 
 
 
can be sold by July 2009 (reftels). 
Ebb and Flow of Spanish Investment 
---------------------------------- 
¶7. (SBU) Bartlett also discussed the upsurge in Spanish 
investment over the past few years, including the construction 
of thousands of new hotel rooms on the North Coast.  He said 
the investment is seminal in that it has produced a critical 
mass of arrivals.  Since many of these Spanish hotel chains 
are well established in Europe, they also provide a global 
marketing network.  Ownership linkages in Mexico, the 
Dominican Republic, and Cuba also provide the Spanish with the 
option of marketing multiple destinations to tourists from 
Europe.  He also attributed the recent surge in arrivals from 
Canada to the Spanish investment, with the clearest indication 
being a recent diversion of Canadians from Spanish chains in 
Cuba to similar ones in Jamaica.  ?In fact, Jamaica?s growth 
in the current difficult market was solely due to a shift in 
share from these markets and not an expansion of the pie?, he 
explained.  Although he welcomed the trend of increased 
arrivals, he was careful to point out that there was a 
downside, as Spanish hotels operate at a level of efficiency 
that makes it significantly harder for smaller indigenous 
properties to compete on price and making it harder for some 
of these operators to survive. 
Cuban Threat 
----------- 
¶8. (SBU) Bartlett was optimistic about a possible opening of 
the Cuban market to U.S. tourists and does not see it as a 
threat.  He reasoned that any lessening of travel restrictions 
to Cuba by U.S. visitors, if it were to occur, would provide 
an opportunity to market joint Cuba/Jamaican packages.  He 
admitted that the Cuban market would come with a certain 
mystique given the curiosity of visitors who have not been 
able to visit the island in recent history; it was once a 
playground for American travelers.  However, he said the 
physical infrastructure might not be able to support tourism 
growth.  He said he expected a short term spike in visitors 
that would taper off, but either way would not have a real 
negative impact on Jamaica. 
Crime A Present Danger 
----------------------- 
¶9.  (SBU) In light of the recent evidence of a slight uptick 
in crime against tourists, emboffs asked what the Government 
of Jamaica (GOJ) was doing in response.  (NOTE: this 
conversation was held prior to the April 19 armed robbery and 
hijacking attempt aboard a Canadian CanJet airplane at 
Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, subject of 
septel, in which a gunman boarded a flight while workers were 
loading baggage and took the passengers and crew hostage.  The 
incident was resolved without any casualties by Jamaican 
authorities.  End Note.  Bartlett said it was ironic that 
Jamaica was currently benefitting from a diversion of visitors 
from Mexico following an upsurge of drug related violence in 
that country.  However, he said Mexico?s recent challenges are 
not lost on Jamaica, given the country?s own struggles with 
crime.  ?Crime is a problem in Jamaica and we have to at least 
show the world that we are doing something about it,? he said. 
He outlined some of the measures being introduced to address 
the problem.  Chief among these was the introduction of 
increased security to police resort areas.  Other measures 
include a mobile command center and closed circuit television 
surveillance capability in Montego Bay.  The security measures 
are to be complemented by social intervention and customer 
service training programs. 
COMMENT 
------- 
¶10. (SBU) Jamaica continues to rely on tourism for nearly 20 
percent of its GDP, as well as the spin-off benefits of 
consumption of goods and services by tourists from local 
businesses.  The GOJ is confident of its ability to secure 
repeat visits by tourists, and believes it will continue to 
weather any challenges, including a prolonged recession in the 
US economy, potential competition from other destinations, or 
rising domestic crime.  The GOJ has an excellent tourism 
marketing campaign, but may underestimate the negative fallout 
that could occur in the event of a high profile criminal act 
against tourists.  It remains to be seen how the hostage 
incident at Montego Bay will affect arrivals, but as there 
were no injuries, it may not leave a lasting impression. 
HEG