Jamaica's cruise sector shrinks 28% since 2019, opposition claims

Jamaica's tourism sector is facing a significant downturn in cruise passenger arrivals, according to opposition spokesperson Andrea Purkiss. She claims the number of cruise visitors has fallen by 28.4 percent since 2019, a stark contrast to a global boom in the industry.

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He (Bartlett) has made statements claiming that the cruise sector ‘lives up to expectations.’ But the only expectation that has been met is his expectation that nobody would check his math.

Purkiss, the Member of Parliament for Hanover Eastern, directly challenged Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett's assertions that the cruise sector is meeting expectations. "The only expectation that has been met is his expectation that nobody would check his math," she stated during her contribution to the Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives.

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Fast-forward to the end of 2025. Jamaica finished the year welcoming just 1,106,361 cruise passengers. Our cruise sector has declined by 28.4 per cent compared to seven years ago.

Data presented by Purkiss shows that Jamaica welcomed 1,544,233 cruise passengers in 2019. By the end of 2025, this number had dropped to 1,106,361. This deficit of nearly 438,000 visitors, she argued, translates to lost opportunities for taxi services, craft vendors, and attractions, costing tourism practitioners over three million in passenger opportunities.

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We are facing a massive shortage of nearly 438,000 visitors who are completely missing from our ports-438,000 less visitors using our taxi services, to buy our craft, to experience our attractions.

Economically, Purkiss estimated the loss at US$30 million, or J$4.5 billion, based on an assumed US$10 spend per guest. She highlighted that while Jamaica is losing ground, the global cruise industry has seen a 25.2 percent increase over 2019, reaching an all-time high of 37.2 million passengers. Caribbean nations are capitalizing on this growth, with Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Cozumel, and the Bahamas all reporting significant increases in cruise traffic.

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Is it that the global cruise industry has not rebounded since the Covid pandemic? The answer is a resounding no.