Jamaica Targets Wellness Tourism Market

Kingston, Jamaica –  Jamaica’s Tourism Minister, Hon Edmund Bartlett says that Jamaica is well positioned to partake in the booming health and wellness tourism market, which represents 1.8 per cent of global GDP.

Speaking at the inaugural Spa Standards and Sensitization Workshop on Wednesday (March 28), the Minister shared that the Health and Wellness sectors, of which spas play a major role, has been identified as one of the key areas of focus under his Ministry’s growth strategy.

“We have created a special segment in our Linkages Network, which focuses solely on developing the health and wellness industry. We recognise that the warmth of our climate, the development of nutraceuticals and natural hot springs are among the products that have become essential to a growing market,” explained the Minister.

He went on to note that, “our research indicates that spa tourism alone represents a $179.7 billion market and a wellness tourist spends 65% more than an average tourist. So, what we are doing here today is encouraging more spas to meet international standards so that we can encourage more of these tourists to visit the island.”

Source: sflcn.com