13 NOV 2019: If the enthusiasm at the Jamaica Tourist Board’s recent Destination Showcase and Fall Product Update Seminars was any indication, then interest in the island out of Canada will continue to rise as quickly as the thermometer here falls as winter sets in.

“We’re going to break the glass ceiling. We’re going to increase Canada by 100,000,” JTB regional director Angella Bennett declared to the more than 350 travel advisors in attendance in Toronto at the Pearson Convention Centre event on Oct. 28.

It’s a lofty goal to be sure for a country that already welcomes close to 400,000 Canadians annually.

“We’re going large this year,” smiled Bennett amid the hoopla of the show.

Indeed, more than a thousand agents were expected at the JTB’s month-long cross-Canada road shows, which called in Saskatoon, Regina, Lethbridge, Edmonton, Calgary, Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa during October.

Besides the requisite trade fair, with 20 Canadian and Jamaica suppliers, hoteliers and attractions in attendance, and a sit-down dinner, attendees experienced what Bennett labelled a “full immersion” into what Jamaica has to offer on an entertainment and experiential level. There was music, dancers, hair-braiding, massages, ice-cold coconuts, a wheel of fortune, on-stage quizzes, costume contests, blue screen photo ops, and lots of prizes.

Of course, agents also got in-depth product and on-island development updates, plus a sneak peak at the JTB’s new campaign and slogan, “Heartbeat of the World.” Divided into four categories: Feel the Rush, Ride the Rhythm, Skip a Beat, and Change the Pace, the campaign will roll out in January, Bennett said.

In the meantime, the JTB will continue to do whatever it can to help agents send clients to Jamaica, Bennett vowed. “You’re not just our partners,” she laughed “You’re our partners in crime!”