Above: the GeeJam hotel in Port Antonio

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Jamaica is projecting a 5 percent increase in tourist arrivals for the 2011/2012 winter tourist season compared to last year, according to Tourism Minister Ed Bartlett.

Bartlett was speaking at Montego Bay’s Sangster International Airport this week to officially open the season.

The Minister said the Jamaican Tourist Board would be spearheading an aggressive advertising and marketing initiative for the winter months, with a view toward increasing arrivals.

“Over one million seats have already been secured for the upcoming season, which represents a 4.7 percent increase over last winter,” he said. “We also expect some 583,000 cruise ship passengers, bringing the total visitors projected to arrive in Jamaica for the winter season to some 1.3 million.”