Jamaica welcomed 4.27 million tourists last year and secured earnings of approximately USD 4.35 billion.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett is confident that Jamaica is on track to achieve its growth targets of attracting 5 million tourists and generating earnings of USD 5 billion for the nation’s economy by 2025.

He explains that the 2024 end-of-year figures represent increases of 5.3% in tourist arrivals and 3.3% in earnings when compared to 2023.

The Tourism Minister says this was achieved despite challenges, including travel advisories, severe weather events, and airlift restrictions over two quarters.

The 5-5-5 targets were previously set in 2016 and were on the verge of being achieved when the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out global travel, forcing Jamaica and other tourist destinations to start from ground zero in rebuilding the industry.