Jamaica Roars Back as Tourism Reopens Strong

By Stephen Weir

Jamaica can say that Hurricane Melissa is gone; it’s now just a bad memory.

Recently, the island and Sandals Resorts hosted a visit by members of the world travel advisory industry and assured them that Jamaica had kissed Melissa goodbye.

About 400 travel agents and industry partners gathered in late November at the Sandals Dunn’s River property. According to the Travel Week news service, the “Back to Jamaica” trip marked the island’s first major tourist marketing event since Hurricane Melissa.

The theme of the four-day visit titled Resilience, Readiness, Return, turned the spotlight on Jamaica’s fast, real-time recovery and underscored that the island is open for business.

The visit was hosted by Adam Stewart, Executive Chairman of Sandals Resorts.

“Seeing is believing,” Stewart told the media. “Much of Jamaica was largely unaffected by Melissa. When you walk the roads, meet the people, visit the attractions, and feel the spirit of this island for yourself, you know it. Jamaica has never looked more beautiful, and the gratitude of our people (and 10,000 Sandals employees) has never been stronger.”

Sandals announced that its resorts in Ocho Rios and Negril, including Sandals Dunn’s River, Sandals Royal Plantation, Sandals Ochi, Sandals Negril, and Beaches Negril, are on track to reopen with full services starting this December.

Sandals’ three other Jamaican resorts — Montego Bay, Royal Caribbean, and South Coast — are scheduled to reopen on May 30, 2026.

Travel-industry representatives praised the visit and offered a warm “Welcome back, Sandals”; just in time for Toronto’s next blizzard of the winter.

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