OBSERVER ONLINE understands that William ‘Bill’ Jefferson Clinton, the 42nd President of the United States of America, vacationed in Montego Bay, St James and its environs over the weekend.
A tweet yesterday by Senior Adviser and Strategist in the Tourism Ministry, Delano Seiveright (@delanoseiv), noted that, “Former President Bill Clinton + friends had great vacation in Jamaica over the last few days… Great Golf…they enjoyed Montego Bay”.
OBSERVER ONLINE understands that Clinton and a number of high profile visitors jetted into Montego Bay on the weekend and spent hours playing golf.
Jamaican security authorities quietly coordinated efforts with the United States Secret Service and other officials to enable a smooth and very private visit.
Jamaica has recently experienced a surge in wealthy and celebrity tourists over the Christmas and new year holidays, including Hollywood celebrities and global billionaires who vacationed at private Villas and exclusive resorts around the island.
Chief Executive Officer of MBJ Airports Ltd., operators of Montego Bay’s Sangster International Airport confirmed that, “from December 23 to December 31, a total of 60 private jets were accommodated at the airport with December 26th recording the highest number with a total of 18 private jets accommodated, the place was absolutely full”.
Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett pointed to provisional data from the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) showing a roughly a seven per cent increase in the number of stopover tourists for the month of January compared to the same month last year.
A record 4.3 million combined stopover and cruise tourists visited Jamaica in 2017. This, according to Bartlett represents a 12.1 per cent increase over arrivals in 2016.
“It is the first time that we brought more than 500,000 additional visitors and near US$500 million more in a single calendar year,” he noted.
Horace Hines
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