All-Inclusive Concept: Attracts visitors from around the world
When Jamaica’s first all-inclusive hotel, Frenchman’s Cove, was in full swing in the early 1960s, it attracted the likes of Queen Elizabeth II, Elizabeth Taylor, The Beatles, Ian Fleming and Errol Flynn.
These famous guests, and others, travelled to Port Antonio by boat, and paid approximately $200 for a week of all-inclusive services, Paul Pennicook, director of tourism at the Jamaica Tourist Board said recently.
The French Club Med resort in Europe is credited with creating the all-inclusive concept in the early 1950s. Like Frenchman’s Cove, guests were given tokens for drinks but it was here in Jamaica in the late 1970s that the term all-inclusive really meant all-inclusive.
“In 1978, Couples Tower Isle opened as the first completely all-inclusive resort in the world; all-inclusive meaning all meals, all drinks, all sports,” Pennicook recalled. “Everything was included, even excursions to Dunn’s River Falls or to go shopping in Ocho Rios.”
Founded by Abe 'John' Issa, Couples Resort, a SuperClubs entity, used the natural settings of Jamaica to attract visitors from around the world. “This entity really put all-inclusive on the map,” Pennicook declared.
Another major player that helped to champion this tourism concept was Sandals Resort. Starting with Sandals Montego Bay in 1981, it has now expanded across the Caribbean.
Having seen the success of Jamaican companies in the all-inclusive business, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, a number of international companies have flocked to our shores to bask in the magic of the sunshine.
“The likes of Riu, Iberostar, etc., are all all-inclusive and so what we have developed in Jamaica is an industry that is, in fact, primarily all-inclusive resorts,” Pennicook claimed.
Many argue, however, that this concept excludes the ordinary Jamaican and prevents him from earning from the scores of visitors who come to the island every year.
“With the explosion in all-inclusive resorts, particularly these large all-inclusive resorts, what it has done is it has increased the demand for products from the small farmers, for products from the persons who raise chickens, for products from Caribbean Broilers and Jamaica Broilers because they have to produce the meat, the vegetables and other things to service these guests,” Pennicook explained.
We want to hear from you email us: editorial@gleanerjm.com or editor@gleanerjm.com
count down to next article