Jamaica Diaspora Feted At Special Appreciation Reception - Jamaicans and Jamaica

Jamaica Diaspora Feted At Special Appreciation Reception

Members of the Jamaican Diaspora Win Airline Tickets and Hotel Stays

NEW YORK, NY – As a thank you to the Jamaica Diaspora community, the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) and the Norman Manley International Airport (NMIA) recently hosted a special reception in their honor in midtown Manhattan. The hosts thanked them for being integral to the success of tourism to Jamaica’s capital city, Kingston. A wide cross section of persons from this key target group comprising members of the alumni associations, businesses, clergy, community groups, not-for-profit organizations, and unions attended the invitation only event, hosted by Jamaican internet sensation “Dutty Berry”.
Jamaica’s Director of Tourism Paul Pennicook in his remarks reiterated the importance of the Diaspora to the island’s tourism. “You’re our ambassadors and we thank you for your ongoing support over the years. We are happy to report that overall arrivals for the winter, that is, January through April 2015 are up five percent. Final figures through March reveal an increase of 9.8% from the US. New York State is up 11.8% and more importantly, non-resident Jamaicans (Diaspora) arrivals are up 5.8% overall, and for the month of March, there was an increase of 15.7%,” noted Mr. Pennicook.
The Tourism Director also advised the audience that 25% of the visitor traffic to Jamaica arrives in Kingston. He further noted that persons visiting the North Coast can now choose to arrive through the Norman Manley International Airport. “Some of you may not know, but one third of the North-South link of the highway is now completed. This has already chopped 25 minutes off the Kingston to Ocho Rios journey because persons are now able to bypass Mount Rosser. Additionally, the rest of that highway should be completed by the first quarter of 2016 and it is estimated that it will make the journey from Kingston to Ocho Rios less than an hour,” emphasized Mr. Pennicook.

Among the government officials in attendance at the special reception were: Ambassador Courtenay Rattray, Jamaica’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations; Herman G. LaMont, Jamaica’s Consul General and New York State Senator Leroy Comrie.

Above: Jamaica’s Consul General Herman G. LaMont (2nd right) and Alfred McDonald, (right) Senior Director, Commercial Development and Planning, Norman Manley International Airport share the lens with Suzette Rochester, Florida Manager, Victoria Mutual Building Society and Andrew Lawrence, (left), President/Director of the Caribbean Trade Council Inc. in Hartford, CT. Photo credit: Kwabena Brown

The three-hour program comprised airline and hotel giveaways throughout the evening along with live entertainment. Refreshments were supplied by: Caribbean Food Delights, Country Kitchen, Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery & Grill, The Door Restaurant, Tower Isles and Grace Foods. Participating airline partners included Caribbean Airlines, Delta, Fly Jamaica and JetBlue who all donated tickets for giveaways.

In celebration of its 11th consecutive J.D. Power Award, JetBlue gave away free roundtrip tickets to 11 lucky attendees. Above: Jamaica’s Director of Tourism Paul Pennicook (pictured in dark suit) and JetBlue’s New York Regional Marketing Manager Albert Ruiz (pictured in light suit), celebrate with the winners. Photo credit: Kwabena Brown

Below: Highlights of the entertainment package featuring DJ Norie, Chris Martin, Ricardo McKenzie, Braata Folk Singers and a fashion show by D’Marsh Couture.

Hotel sponsors included: The Altamont Court, The Jamaica Pegasus, The Knutsford Court and Spanish Court which all donated weekend stays. VIP Attractions also donated complimentary lounge passes. Other partners include the Consulate General, Victoria Mutual Building Society and VP Records.

For more information about travel to Jamaica, please go to www.visitjamaica.com

About Jamaica Tourist Board
The Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), founded in 1955, is Jamaica’s national tourism agency based in the capital city of Kingston. The JTB was declared the Caribbean’s Leading Tourist Board by the World Travel Awards (WTA) from 2006 to 2014. Also in 2014, Jamaica earned the WTA’s vote for the Caribbean’s Leading Destination and Caribbean’s Leading Cruise Destination for the eighth consecutive year. Additionally, the Historic Falmouth Cruise Port was recognized as the Caribbean’s Leading Heritage Tour while Ocho Rios was named the Caribbean’s Leading Cruise Port and Sangster International Airport was voted the Caribbean’s Leading Airport. In Canada, Jamaica was voted the Favourite Honeymoon Destination by Travel Agents.

JTB offices are located in Kingston, Montego Bay, Miami, Toronto and London. Representative offices are located in Berlin, Barcelona, Rome, Amsterdam, Mumbai and Tokyo.

For details on upcoming special events, attractions and accommodations in Jamaica go to the JTB’s Web site at www.visitjamaica.com or call the Jamaica Tourist Board at 1-800-JAMAICA (1-800-526-2422). Follow the JTB on Facebook at www.facebok.com/visitjamaica, on Twitter at www.twitter.com/visitjamaicanow, on Instagram at www.instagram.com/visitjamaica, on Pinterest at www.pinterest.com/myjamaica, or on YouTube at www.youtube.com/myjamaicajtb. View the JTB blog at www.islandbuzzjamaica.com.

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