Jamaica has big plans for the Canadian market, according to Tourism Minster Edmund Bartlett. 

The island is pushing to reach 500,000 annual visitors to Jamaica by the year 2025. 

Bartlett was speaking this week ahead of a trip to Canada, where he will be making a “winter marketing blitz” in the country ahead of the peak season.”

“We have an overarching goal to welcome 5 million visitors and earn 5 billion dollars in tourism revenue by 2025,” Bartlett said. “Canada is our third largest market and we are currently at just above the 300,000 mark and getting to where we were in 2010 when we had up to 400,000 visitors coming from Canada. My projections are driven by data, and I have evidence now that the Canadian market is ready to take us to half a million visitors within the next two years.”

Bartlett will be holding meetings with a number of Canadian carriers on the trip, including Air Canada, WestJet and Canada Jetlines. 

The latter, Canada Jetlines, recently announced plans to launch new flights to Montego Bay this winter. 

“This initiative is about that – getting more airlift,” Bartlett said.