CASTRIES, St. Lucia – Air Jamaica and the island of St. Lucia are currently hosting top reporters and editors from media houses in New York and New Jersey to see sustainable tourism in action.
Arriving on the island this week were Ian Williams, an experienced writer and columnist for MaximsNews; Andria Hall, former CNN news anchor and host of “The Walk at Work” on WMCA radio; Stephanie Simon, reporter and producer at NY1 NEWS; Kenton Kirby, editor of Caribbean Life and Jude Massiah, freelance writer and Caribbean Life contributor.
The media got a first hand taste of Air Jamaica’s legendary in-flight hospitality from New York’s JFK Airport to Hewanorra International Airport, and are currently staying at the newly-opened, but already award-winning Coco Resorts in Rodney Bay.
During their four-day stay, the journalists will sample St. Lucia’s beautiful attractions by land and by sea and will visit some of the accommodations in the north and south of the island, including Almond Resorts, Bay Gardens Hotel, Village Inn, Sandals Grande St. Lucian and Coconut Bay Resort thanks in part to the St. Lucia Tourist Board. The newly opened Rain Forest Sky Rides is also on their schedule.
“Friendly, accommodating and customer-centered as always. Even though I don’t normally have champagne with breakfast at the crack of dawn, I felt compelled to rise to the occasion when it was offered,” said journalist Ian Williams of Air Jamaica’s non-stop lovebird flight to the island on Monday morning which arrived 28 minutes early. He was equally impressed with the level of customer service on the island and at host property Coco Palm where hosts respond with professionalism to the changing needs of today’s discerning traveler.
Air Jamaica senior executive George deMercado said the Jamaica flag carrier is committed to developing a strong relationship with the fourth estate. “The media in the US, the Caribbean and further afield are very important partners to us in the airline business and to the region’s hospitality sector. We will redouble efforts in strengthening this valuable relationship this year,” he said.
Air Jamaica offers non-stop service from New York’s JFK International Airport to St. Lucia on Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays, departing New York at 7:00 a.m. and arriving in St. Lucia at 11:35 p.m. On the return leg, the airline departs St. Lucia at 6:35 p.m. and arrives in New York at 11:15 p.m.
Air Jamaica provides more non-stop flights to Jamaica than any other carrier with more than 270 flights per week from Atlanta, Baltimore/Washington, Chicago, Ft. Lauderdale, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York (JFK), Orlando, and Philadelphia in the U.S., Toronto, Canada and from London to Montego Bay and Kingston.
The airline also offers intra-regional service with flights between Jamaica and Bahamas, Barbados, Bonaire, Cuba, Curaçao, Grand Cayman , Grenada and St. Lucia . The airline’s code share agreement with Delta Airlines, its joint fare arrangements and compatible schedules with United, and other U.S. carriers, extends its access to more than 150 cities within the Continental U.S.
