The Geographical Features of Jamaica - Essay Example

REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON A MATURE TOURIST DESTINATION - JAMAICA Introduction Jamaica is a major global tourist destination. Jamaicas tourism interests have clearly recognised the worldwide appeal of the countrys heritage offerings including the history, geography and ethnic motifs (Savery, 2008). The countrys unique culture and identity makes it a major tourism haven that many people are willing to go and see and experience. The distinct blend of British influences as well as the indigenous Afro-Caribbean culture and its stories and contexts, gives Jamaica a very special status in global tourism. “Jamaica boasts of a long and distinguished history as a tourist destination, but essentially so, as what might be called a “three S” (Sun, Sea and Sand) target (Daye and Chambers, 2008 p61). Jamaica is famous for its climate which is tropical and warm all year round. This gives the visitor a feel of the summer season even in times where there is winter in the temperate climate zones. The location and proximity as well as the geographical features of Jamaica has made it a real investment point for major tourism business interest holders (Sheehan and Black, 2011). The government has supported tourism alongside other private investors and this has made the nation a popular and matured tourist destination today (Sheehan and Black, 2011). This report undertakes a critical analysis of the tourism industry of Jamaica and recommends ways of improving the industry. In attaining this end, the following objectives are explored: 1. A critical assessment of the Jamaican tourism industry: the push, pull and competitor position of the countrys tourism industry. 2. An evaluation of the external image of Jamaicas tourism industry from the North American and European perspective. 3. Recommendations on how to rejuvenate and rekindle the Jamaican Tourism industry. Section A: Internal & External Assessment of Tourism in Jamaica This section would examine the internal components of the Jamaican tourism industry. It would give insights into the various elements and factors that define the shape and structures of Jamaicas tourism industry. The base period for this section is between 2000 and 2010. However, for some detailed analyses, periods in-between the base period would be examined. Jamaican Tourism Infrastructure Jamaicas tourism is centred around six major tourism zones (Paddington, 2009). These zones contain some of the worlds biggest resorts and this forms the foundation for Jamaica as a global tourist destination (Paddington, 2009). Throughout the country, there are hotels, resorts, cottages/villas, guest houses and apartments that support the growing tourism industry of Jamaica. The Hotel Incentives Act provides tax incentives that allow the owners of these hotels to retain more profits and make the sector attractive for other investors. According to the Tourism Task Force of Jamaica (2009), there are 29,794 rooms available in the country. The breakdown according to the six major units of the country are: Geographical Unit Number of Rooms Montenegro Bay 9307 Ocho Rios 8202 Negril 7574 Kingston 2340 South Coast 1369 Port Antonio 995 Figure 1: Geographical Units and Accommodation Units in Jamaica The Jamaican tourism industry is strongly linked to other related industries that are fairly developed to support and help the tourism industry. This include the food and beverage industry which is very advanced and continues to expand to include more foreign investors from around the world (Tourism Task Force, 2009). There are various attractions that are being developed in the country. They are treated as sub-sector units of the tourism industry and there are various facilities throughout the country that provide those services. The sub-sectors include cultural, historical, health and other ecotourism units that are growing on the island. There is a constant increase in the value that is added to hotels and restaurants. From the figure above, presented in the Tourism Task Forces Plans, the country adds a consist value of between 1% and 10% of its basic infrastructure in the hospitality. This means that the country continues to improve in terms of infrastructure and this shows promise for the tourism industry of Jamaica. Demand and Supply There are various trends that define Jamaicas tourism industry. They include the number of people who come onto the island and the number of people who transit upon the island as tourists just moving on to another destination. It seems that there are millions of tourists who visit Jamaica each year. In each of the classes, including the stopover arrivals, the number continues to increase each year. It is quite predictable that this trend would continue to increase over the coming years. Also, the number of cruise passengers, although it might be shrinking from year to year, seems to be above the one million mark. This trend shows that Jamaica is popular as a cruise destination. Overall, tourism has continued to increase consistently in the period captured. This shows that the constant rate of 3.2% gives a promise that more and more tourists would continue to come onto the island and it gives a positive feature of this matured destination. In real terms, the tourism sector of Jamaica has grown consistently over the past fifty years. This provides the most appropriate tag of the nation as a matured destination. In the early 1960s, only about half a million tourists came into the country. The receipts were very low and below $50 million However, it began to pick up in the early 1980s. By 2008, Jamaica was getting almost 3 million tourists per annum. This showed a revenue of almost $2 billion. This shows that the destination has come a long way and Jamaica is one of the countries that has developed its tourism potentials significantly over the past half century. With the development of allied industries, the Jamaican Tourist Board indicates that the amounts of money being spent by tourists and being injected into the Jamaican economy by tourists has risen significantly over the past years. The country has increased tourism revenue from just above 1 billion in 1999 to almost 2 billion by 2009. This shows that the countrys connected infrastructure has been growing and more offerings have been made to visitors. This is making Jamaica a credible tourism destination. Regulatory and Legal Concerns There are five main classes of rules that define the Jamaican tourism industry (Milton, 2011). These include: 1. The Jamaican Tourist Board Act: This sets up the authority of the Tourist Board and provides it with the appropriate mandate within which it operates. The JTB has the power to supervise and make laws for the regulation and control of the tourism industry of Jamaica. 2. Tourism Enhancement Fund Act: This is a fund meant to selectively provide incentives for certain units of the Jamaican tourism industry that needs some degree of support and/or assistance. This include well meaning tourism units and potential tourist attractions that needs to be given some kind of support to function. 3. Hotel Incentives Act: This act is meant to provide appropriate tax incentives to promote the hotel industry and attract new players and investors into the industry. It helps to empower hotel owners and provide them with the needed financial relieves in order to function appropriately and support the growth of the Jamaican tourism industry. 4. Resorts Incentives Act: This targets foreign investors in particular and aims at getting them to come and invest in Jamaica. The idea is to produce more resorts to assist in the attainment of the nations tourism plans. 5. Hotel Keepers Liability Act: This is to help hotel managers to become key partners in safeguarding the lives and assets of tourists. It is to provide some caveats and limits to hoteliers and force them to support the governments drive to make Jamaica a safe haven for tourists from all over the world. Transportation Jamaicas Transportation Sector is marked by a wide variety of transportation options. Burlington identifies that Jamaicas cruise tourism accounts for an average of 38% of the total number of tourists who arrive on the island (2012). In 2008, there were 1.1 million cruise passengers alone (Tourism Task Force, 2008). The major players include the Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd and the Carnival Corporation who provide cruise services to the United States and other parts of the world. This allow the Jamaican resorts to sell tourist packages that allow them to spend a significant portion of their vacation on the island. Air Transport in Jamaica is also big and has played as significant role in the growth of the tourism industry (Philips, 2010). The national carrier, Air Jamaica has brought in significant numbers of tourists onto the island. There are new airlines like Donald Sangster Airlines and other smaller carriers that link passengers with the UK, Latin America and North America (Tourism Task Force, 2009). Road transport infrastructure in Jamaica is also large and significant. Jamaica has good roads that link the different units of the country. The figure below provides a view of the road systems in the country: Effectively, the road network links the six main resort centres of Jamaica and allow inland travel for tourists who want to see the Jamaican countryside or tour different cities in the country. Jamaica also has some important car rental facilities and companies that support the movement of tourists either in groups or individually. Jamaicas Governments Inputs In 2002, the current Jamaica Prime Minister, then head of the tourism unit of the country announced that the government policy was to provide coordination of different stakeholders to make the industry work best for the optimum results. The advisory efforts of the different experts in the relevant fields was to be called upon to provide the various improvements that the government sought (Miller, 2002). This included the acceleration of public-private partnerships and the encouragement of foreign investments onto the islands tourism industry (Miller, 2002). Vision 2030 involves 31 task force units commissioned by the government to provide long term national development for Jamaica. Tourism had one of such task forces. The vision aims at making “Jamaica the place of choice to live, work, raise families and do business”. This provides the framework for the Jamaican development drive. The tourism industry is one of the key sectors that they aim to use to attain this end. In doing this, the government seeks continuous improvement in its regulatory and other control oversights to make Jamaica the top destination for visitors. A lot has been invested in the tourism industry and more and more proactive measures are being taken to ensure that Jamaica becomes a major tourist destination in the world. Global Matters and Competitors Jamaica is part of the regional grouping, Caribbean Community (CARICOM) which is made up of 18 nations and dependencies and operates single markets this means that tourism is enhanced by the easy movement of persons throughout the region (Ramjeet, 2009). This means that Caricom allows Jamaica to become more accessible to tourists who come into the region. With Jamaica being a dominant nation in the are, they always have the assurance of being a preferred stopover for tourists who go to other places. In terms of competitors, the main contenders to Jamaica identified by Jessen and Rodriques are: 1. Internal Tourism 2. New Niches 3. Major Contenders (2011) Internal tourism in nations like Britain and the United States will always compete with a destination like Jamaica which offers different and exotic sights and sounds. This means that most tourists who cannot afford long distance travels or cannot leave for long periods of time would rather opt to remain at home and not travel so far to Jamaica to have holidays. There are also new niches that keep coming up. These niches are specialized in nature and they attract tourists with separate interests. For instance, new niches are opening up in South America and Mexico which attracts Latino tourists and this would be a better option for such travellers rather than Jamaica which might be too Anglophone for such tourists. Also, traditional tourists like destinations in the old world prove to be contenders. For instance, people interested in Western civilization would go to Europe whilst those interested in religious tours would go to Israel. Medlik identifies a class of unusual competitors who compete with Jamaica simply because of globalisation (2011). This include destinations like South East Asia which was not a particular favourite of other tourists but is now highly accessible. The main contenders to Jamaica in the Caribbean region are Barbados, Hawaii the Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands (Medlik, 2011). These contenders have historic links to the United States and this makes it much easier for American tourists to access these places. Inhibitors to the Jamaican Tourism Industry According to the World Economic Forum, there are major issues that stand in the way of Jamaica as the worlds favourite tourist destination. They include: This table above shows the major many problems in Jamaica. The most relevant to the tourist industry is the area of crime, theft and violent crimes. This provides a major issue with making Jamaica a global tourism destination. Also, corruption and political challenges stands in the way of foreign investments. Other planning matters makes it difficult for tourism targets to be met on the island. SWOT Analysis of Jamaicas Tourism Sector. Strengths - Abundance of Tourism Infrastructure - Plans for improvement of tourist infrastructure - Governments support for the tourism industry - Culture, music and history - Location - Proper governance structures and systems - Presence of dedicated infrastructure - Political stability and consistency (compare to Cuba) - Language advantage (Anglophone) - Global brand exposition through reggae musicians and athletes Weaknesses - Crime and lawlessness - Poor human rights systems - Low literacy - High poverty levels - Poor infrastructure in other sectors Opportunities - Expansion of the tourism industry - Improvement of services and offerings. - Growth into other departments and sectors - Improvement of offerings - Promotion through many migrants Threats - Fear of tourists - Growth of other destinations - Increased competition and advertising Section B: Organic Image of Jamaica as a Tourist Destination The BBC presents Jamaica as a tourist destination for luxury travellers (BBC, 2011). In doing this, they show the luxury blue beaches and the tropical elements of the country. This presents it as an ideal place for luxury travels and honeymoons as well as other business engagements. The BBC shows Jamaica as a nation that has a rich culture. With Britain having a long history and connection with Jamaica, they show how the country has advanced and has increased its systems through various British estates and other trends that are related to Jamaica and the era of the slave trade. Places like Port Royal and its connection to Africa also shows the rich image of Jamaica. Also, the most popular thing to come out of Jamaica, Reggae Music is at the forefront of the British definition of the tourism potentials of Jamaica. They show an image of Jamaica that cannot be separated from Bob Marley and other major Jamaican artistes who play a major role for the country. Bob Marley, whose reggae music is know the world over is seen as a convenient icon for the promotion of Jamaica as an ideal destination. It provides the opening for discussions on other things that a tourist is likely to see on the island., Another aspect of the British view of Jamaica is the role of athletes in the promotion of the countrys tourism potential. The strong link between the successes of Jamaican athletes and the London Olympics is a major theme in the promotion of Jamaica as a tourism destination. Athlete like Usain Bolt who has an incredible history on the court provides an image of Jamaica that provides a strong view that most potential tourists around the world can identify with. The Jamaican flag is an important showpiece of Jamaica in the global tourism industry. The green, yellow and black colours provide a strong image of the country and its presence around the globe. The American view of Jamaica is similar to the British view. CNN presents Jamaica as a tourst paradise that is friendly and has strong connections to the tropical weather and reggae music (Pawlowski, 2010). CNN went as far as listing Ocho Rios in Jamaica as one of the worlds 12 most addictive destations (CNN, 2011). The Jamaican image is presented in the yellow-black and green colours of the countrys national flag and is connected with the successes of individual Jamaicans who have achieved great heights on the global level like athletics and reggae music. The American view of Jamaica is however tainted with the episodes of drug violence and the arrests of some deadly druglords which turned violent. Through this, there is a lot of information given to American tourists about how to deal with safety issues and the like. Section C: Rejuvenation of Jamaicas Tourism Potentials In order to rejuvenate the tourism sector of Jamaica, the following strategy and its related inputs are recommended Strategic Framework This would involve the creation of long term plans and policies that would bind all stakeholders in the Jamaican tourism industry. In the bid to rejuvenate the tourism industry, the main objectives should include: a. Improve the brand image of Jamaica b. Improve the offerings and position of stakeholders c. Assure potential tourists that Jamaica is safe and provides a great package d. Emphasise on the competitive advantage of Jamaica In doing this, the following units of the strategic plan would be examined. They include: 1. Branding: There is the need to repackage Jamaica to potential tourists. This can build on the traditional approach of promoting Jamaicas colours, and great personalities. 2. Infrastructure improvements: There is the need to continue in the improvement of infrastructure as identified above. This should be done strategically in order to enhance offerings and systems. 3. Operational Concerns: How the tourism industry is regulated and how it rans is a major cause of concern. The government needs to make it improve for the best possible results 4. Country-level adjustments: There should be adjustments amongst the countries and government infrastructure holders to enhance the tourism potential of Jamaica. 5. Industry-level adjustments: There should be tourist infrastructure adjustments which can help the country to become more productive and provide better offerings 6. Security adjustment concerns: Key stakeholders in the security sector must be made to contribute to providing safe tourism for visitors. 7. Marketing: When a new and appropriate plan is formulated, the government needs to market it in order to promote the competitiveness of the Jamaican tourism industry ahead of other global and regional players. There must be the improvement of these options and capabilities to enhance Jamaicas image and also support an appropriate marketing plan. This marketing plan needs to be done when the strategic framework listed above is done. With this done, the following practical considerations can be put at the forefront. With these parameters, the following set of strategies would be employed, to rejuvenate Jamaicas already matured and choked tourism sector Marketing Strategies The marketing strategy would seek to draw medium to long-term plans for the improvement of the marketing of Jamaica as an ideal tourism destination. In doing this, the following highlights must be examined and implemented accordingly: 1. Rebranding: There is the need to rebrand Jamaica as a unique destination. In doing this, there is the need to re-assemble the main components of the Jamaican story. The Jamaican flag and its features must be present. Also, star athletes like Usain Bolt and other key players in the industry need to be featured whilst new and up-and-coming artistes like dance-hall artistes that tourists are likely to see on arrival should be used alongside the old pioneering reggae artistes. This will show a present image of Jamaica that would provide a compelling case for tourists around the world to re-examine the offerings on the island. 2. Highlight Changes: Three years ago, Jamaica was the most dangerous nation on earth, however, improvement in policing and other multilateral arrangements to stem out crimes and gangs has given the Jamaican police authorities the upper hand (Capleton, 2012). This improvement must be part of the brand and part of the message of the new Jamaica. This will provide a good and strong message about a safe country and this will dispel the view that Jamaica is a dangerous nation. 3. Build on competitive advantage: Jamaica needs to build on its competitive advantage and its unique and distinct competencies. For instance, the unique history and optimistic view of the people who survived terrible aggression and treatments and a strong view of the location and climate as well as the beaches should be at the centre of the marketing strategy. 4. The Marketing Plan: The marketing and promotion of Jamaica should be done in three phases over a seven year period, as we close in on the Vision 2030. The first phase should promote the new image of Jamaica: rebranded Jamaica emphasising on change and the core competencies of the tourism industry. The next phase should focus on repeating customer experiences in the new Jamaica. This would promote more interest. The final phase of the marketing plan must include practical considerations like prices, packages and potentials for further investments in Jamaica. Market Generation Strategies This set of strategies will provide guidelines on how to increase market share of the global tourism industry. In order to attain this, the following recommendations are put forward: 1. Promotion of IT and the use of customer database amongst tourist facilities throughout Jamaica: This will involve the promotion of high-technology products and systems to keep customers informed about new trends. Taylor identifies that it costs seven times more to get a new client than to convert an existing client to a repeat client (2007). Due to this, the Jamaican authorities must ensure that all tourism facilities keep databases on customers and train them to use these databases to attract clients and keep them interested. This will create a core client base of tourists who would also make referrals to other tourists to come and see Jamaica. 2. Proactive Promotions: The various industries and sectors of Jamaica must be mobilized to advertise Jamaicas tourism potential on the global media. Adverts similar to that of Malaysia, Nigeria and other countries on networks like CNN and the BBC would enhance the view of the island to the global viewer population and promote tourism directly and indirectly. 3. Utilisation of the Social Media: Since more people spend time on the Internet than any other outlet these days, it would be propitious for Jamaica to advertise its tourist opportunities on social media. This will enable them to generate videos and send messages to customers that would show attractive and nice elements and aspects of the Jamaican tourism industry. Also, on the entity level, the government can promote such social media adverts and other services to enhance exposure of Jamaica as an ideal destination. Product and Resource Development 1. Raise local standards: Through the Jamaican Tourist Board, the government can raise standards in its tourism industry. This would ensure that various levels of tourists that are targeted by the country can come and get the kind of leisure they want on the island. This can be done by setting up targets, communicating them with the various facilities and entities and supervise the authorities to attain them. 2. Increase Foreign Partnerships: The Jamaican government can increase bilateral and multilateral agreements with nations that have a potential of supporting the nations tourism entities to expand tourism. This can be done through investment agreements with Jamaicans in the Diaspora, Europeans and North Americans. This will increase investments. Also, other partners can be encouraged to do business and interact with Jamaican tourism entities. 3. Liberalisation and Hybrid Packages: Standards and requirements for starting tourism businesses and trade should be reduced. This will encourage non-Jamaican businesses to come to Jamaica, set up entities and work on them to support the tourism industry of the country. 4. Branding Integration: The theme of the national branding drive should be integrated into all other entities throughout the country. This will enhance the common purpose and promote tourism across board. Government Policies and Strategies Primarily, the government of Jamaica can integrate the vision 2030 into the tourism sector. This would promote different branches of the tourism industry and help the nation to blend tourism into its bigger picture. This can be done through enhancing other niches of tourism like business tourism and family tourism. Through this people would be encouraged to come and have holidays and also seek longer term commitment on the island. References BBC News (2012) “Jamaica Profile” [Online] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-18784061 Accessed: December 8, 2012. Burlington, C. (2011) Caribbean Tourism Industry Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons. Capleton, D. (2012) Jamaica: Economy and Trends for the New Dawn Kingston: University of West Indies Press. CNNGo Staff (2012) “Worlds 12 Worst Tourist Traps” [Online] Available at: http://travel.cnn.com/explorations/life/15-worlds-worst-tourist-traps-077541 Accessed: December 8, 2012. Daye, M. and Chambers D. (2008) New Perspectives in Caribbean Tourism London: Routledge Jamaican Tourist Board (2012) Jamaican Tourism Product [Online] Available at: http://www.jtbonline.org/tourism_jamaica/pages/aboutproduct.aspx Accessed December 8m 2012. Jessen, A. and Rodriguez, E. (2011) The Caribbean Country New York: BID-INTAL Press. Medlik, S. (2011) Tourism and Hospitality in the United States London: Routledge. Miller, S. P. (2002) Tourism Master Plan – Jamaica [Online] Available at: http://www.tourismja.com/tourism-master-plan/ Accessed: December 8, 2012. Milton, S. (2011) Tourism in the Global Context: Cases and Theories London: Palgrave Macmillan. Paddington, J. (2009) Tourism in Jamaica London: SAGE Publications. Pawlowski, A. (2010) “Jamaican Unrests Prompts Tourism Worries” [Online] Available at: http://articles.cnn.com/2010-05-25/travel/jamaica.unrest.tourism.worries_1_jamaica-last-year-caribbean-tourism-organization-tourism-council?_s=PM:TRAVEL Accessed: December 8, 2012. Philips, C. (2010) Introduction to Tourism Management Mason, OH: Cengage Ramjeet, O. (2009) “CARICOM Countries will Speak with One Voice in Meetings with USA & Canadian leaders” Caribbean News Net 16/04.2009 Savery, H. (2008) The Management and Marketing of Jamaicas Past Santa Barbera: Proquest. Sheehan, S. and Black, A. (2011) Jamaica London: Marshall Cavendish. Taylor, P. (2007) Fundamental Principles of Marketing Mason, OH: Cengage Tourism Task Force (2009) Vision 2030 – Jamaica Tourism Sector Plan 2009 – 2030 [Online] Available at: http://www.vision2030.gov.jm/Portals/0/Sector_Plan/Microsoft%20Word%20-%20Vision%202030%20Jamaica%20-%20Final%20Draft%20Tourism%20Sector%20Plan%20_Sep%E2%80%A6.pdf Accessed: December 8, 2012 . World Economic Forum Travel and Tourism Statistics (2010) Jamaica [Online] Available at: http://www3.weforum.org/docs/GCR2011-12/CountryProfiles/Jamaica.pdf Accessed: 8th December, 2012. Read More