Janet Silvera, Senior Tourism Writer

An Air Jamaica airliner takes off from a foreign airport. As summer travel declines, travellers are being warned to expect delays. The national carrier has slashed rates by 50 per cent for travellers coming from North America.

To stimulate sluggish fall sales, Air Jamaica has slashed airfares from North America by up to 50 per cent.

Several local hotels quickly followed with reduced rates in a concerted bid to attract more tourists to the island.

How much new business the price strategy will mean for Air Jamaica was uncertain, however, as rival American Airlines immediately matched the cut.

Led by the national carrier, the rate reductions resulted from collaboration between public and private sector organisations including the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) and the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA).

The participating hotels include: Shaw Park, Doctor's Cave, Round Hill Hotel and Villas, Point Village, SuperClubs, Sandals, Holiday Inn, Club Ambience, Coco La Palm, Jamaica Inn, Couples, FDR and the Ritz-Carlton Rose Hall.

Making the fare sale announcement Tuesday to some 80 American travel agents during a mini trade show and presentation in Montego Bay, Air Jamaica's area sales manager western Jamaica, Parsha Buddho, said that the booking window was from September 15 to October 5, with travel from 10 U.S. gateways now until December 14.

Fares discounted

She noted that fares, particularly between Miami and Jamaica, have been heavily discounted.

The current list of specials on the Air Jamaica website advertises Miami to Kingston for US$178 round trip, taxes not included.

American Airlines on Wednesday announced its own specials, saying its Miami-Kingston service would now cost

US$74 each way or round trip US$148.

The special for Bahamas and Caribbean, is for travel between October 2 and December 14.

The Air J and hotel room sales come at a time when most of the players in the hospitality sector have all but given up on generating reasonable profit in the traditionally slow fall period.

First vice-president of the JHTA, Evelyn Smith, told The Financial Gleaner that her organisation was excited about the prospects that the initiative could bring to fuel last minute bookings to resorts thave been suffering considerably.

Aggressive promotion

Even before the sale was announced publicly, the SuperClubs chain of hotels had commenced an aggressive promotion in the marketplace offering stays at the Starfish Trelawny Resort & Spa for US$89 per night, per person, in select rooms and US$98 for ocean-view accommodations; and at Breezes Montego Bay, nightly rates from US$111 in a cabin room; US$125 ocean view; and US$134 ocean front.

Other rates ranged up to US$156.

In the meantime, Sunset Resorts has unveiled a 'Single Parent Vacation Promotion' featuring a 50 per cent discount off the double occupancy published rates when accompanied by one to three children under the age of 15 in the same room.

The promotion is valid for reservations booked between now and December 15, for travel from November 1 through December 22, at Sunset Beach Resort, Montego Bay and now through December 22, at Sunset Jamaica Grande, Ocho Rios.

Having already given up on September sales, Smith said she is hopeful that the promotion will have a positive effect on the months of November and early December.

The lucrative winter season begins December 15.

Her optimism has been shared by Air Jamaica's senior vice-president of marketing and sales, Paul Pennicook who has tagged the initiative "offering Jamaica at an absolutely fantastic value."

"This fall sale will have spin-offs for the winter," he asserted.

Year to date the island's stopover tourist visits have reflected a 5.0 per cent decline.

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com

The 22-acre SuperClubs Breezes Runaway Bay resort in St. Ann. The hotel is running room specials to stimulate fall sales with per-person rates of US$134 for a luxury room and US$153 for a verandah suite with a plunge pool. - File