Things are looking up for your summer travel plans. Just yesterday, the CDC reclassified 14 destinations including Canada and St. Lucia to its Level 3 category, meaning the agency is no longer advising against travel there altogether. Now, another popular tourist spot has been downgraded to a Level 1.
On April 6, the CDC moved Jamaica to a Level 1 designation due to a dramatic decline in COVID cases in recent months. It is now considered a low-risk destination.
“A Level 1 travel advisory is amongst the best news the tourism industry can hope for,” Jamaican Minister of Tourism Hon. Edmund Bartlett said in a press release. “This reduced designation is a testament to the work of our government and the Jamaican people as well as a hopeful incentive to keep our tourism recovery moving forward.”
According to Minister Bartlett himself, arrivals to Jamaica have been increasing and the country is hoping to make a full tourism recovery in 2023.
“In 2021, Jamaica welcomed more than 1.5 million visitor arrivals to our shores. These visitors’ on-island spend contributed over USD $2.095 billion into our country’s economy, positively impacting local businesses and tourism stakeholders,” Minister Bartlett added. “For 2022, the outlook for the tourism sector remains positive with projections for approximately 2.45 to 2.5 million visitor arrivals and a total visitor spend of about USD $2.9 billion.”
Jamaica still requires a negative PCR or antigen test taken within three days of your arrival, but the island nixed its Travel Authorization form and travel-related quarantine requirements as of March 1.
