Jamaica to relaunch its tourism industry after Hurricane Melissa with a comprehensive recovery plan by december 2025

The initiative, presented by Tourism Minister Hon. Edmund Bartlett, sets a target date of December 15, 2025, for the complete relaunch of the island’s tourism operations following the impact of Hurricane Melissa. The plan brings together a Recovery Task Force and a Tourism Resilience Coordination Committee to align marketing, communications, infrastructure repairs, logistics, and operational support under one unified objective.

“The recovery cannot be left to chance. We are coordinating every area—marketing, logistics, infrastructure repairs, and assistance—toward a single goal: the full operation of the industry by December 15,” said Minister Bartlett. He added that progress will be tracked through regular public updates so that workers, visitors, and partners can plan with confidence.

The Recovery Task Force, chaired by John Byles, Executive Vice President of Chukka Caribbean Adventures, will oversee rapid assessments, product rehabilitation, and service readiness across resorts, attractions, airports, ports, and major corridors. The Resilience Coordination Committee, led by Jessica Shannon, Chief Experience Officer at Sandals Resorts International, will mobilize resources, skilled volunteers, and technical experts to support workers, small and medium-sized tourism enterprises, and community initiatives that sustain the local economy.

This coordinated effort will work closely with the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) and utilize the platform supportjamaica.gov.jm to ensure transparent and efficient aid delivery.

Minister Bartlett emphasized that preparedness, empathy, and collaboration will once again guide Jamaica’s tourism resilience model—an approach that previously enabled a record post-COVID recovery.

Source: @tourismja on Instagram