For 2023, Jamaica’s culinary excellence receives two prestigious world culinary awards, celebrating multi-category success.

The island has received the prestigious World Culinary Awards’ Top Caribbean Culinary Destination.

Thsu it achieved global recognition of the rich and diverse origins of Jamaican cuisine.

Its gastronomic scene of Montego Bay has earned the prestigious title of Caribbean’s Best Culinary City Destination.

Testament to the vast range of gold standard eateries on the island, Summerhouse at Harmony Hall, and Oleander at Sandals Montego Bay won Best Restaurant and Best Hotel Restaurant of the year in Jamaica, respectively.

The island also boasts the World’s Best All-Inclusive Culinary Resort 2023, with Sandals Dunn’s River securing the top spot.

From breathtaking natural beauty to a booming nightlife, Jamaica makes for a perfect getaway. However, this island’s rich offering extends far beyond this to its vibrant culinary landscape. 

Providing an additional layer of allure to an already captivating destination, Jamaica’s award-winning array of restaurants and dishes are set to satisfy every hungry traveller’s craving.

The cultural fusion that defines Jamaican cuisine can be seen through its African influences. It is in the use of spices, herbs and the beloved fruit, ackee.

The Taino people (Jamaica’s original inhabitants) left their legacy on the cuisine through ingredients like cassava, yams, sweet potatoes, and tropical fruits, such as pineapple and guava. 

These influences have shaped Jamaica’s unique blend of flavours, and cooking techniques into a distinct vibrant and diverse culinary heritage popular all over the world.

In celebration of Jamaica earning the coveted Caribbean top spot, Visit Jamaica rounds up the island’s most popular national dishes and where to find them.

Ackee and Saltfish

Jamaica’s national dish combines the soft and mild ackee fruit with salted codfish.

The exotic fleshy fruit takes on the savoury fish flavour along with peppers and spices and is typically enjoyed at breakfast with a delectable fried dumpling.

Synonymous with Jamaica, a particularly tasty version of this iconic dish is served up at Smurf’s Café, Treasure Beach, St. Elizabeth, alongside a buzzing atmosphere which will have you coming back for a second serving.

Curry Goat  

A delicious combination of spicy, melt-in-your-mouth meat and chunky diced potato in a rich gravy, Jamaican curry goat ranks among the top eats in Jamaica.

To create the ultimate depth of flavour, the meat is marinated overnight before being slow cooked in a mix of herbs and spices.

Visitors to Miss T’s will experience the warmth of Jamaican hospitality and a contemporary twist on traditional cuisine.

With an expertly crafted, custom spiced curry goat, Miss T’s is a great location for an authentic and memorable dining experience in Jamaica.

Jerk Chicken 

Jamaican food would be incomplete without the finest Jerk, where meat is marinated in spices and slow cooked over a fire or grill resulting in its iconic, mouthwatering smoky flavour.

Scotchie’s, resting across the island in Montego Bay, Ocho Rios and Kingston is famous for its finger-licking delicious flavours and authentic Jamaican jerk chicken.

Cooked over an open pimento wood fire following a punchy spice marinade, Scotchie’s serve this up alongside traditional sides for a satisfying gastronomic experience.

Jerk cooking’s incremental role in Jamaican cuisine is recognised by its own festival every August: Mobay Jerk & Food Festival provides holidaymakers and foodies with a complete ‘day out’ from food to performances.

Jamaican Beef Patty  

Jamaican beef patty is a perfect lunchtime meal or beach snack, washed down with a crisp, cold Red Stripe beer.

Coated in buttery pastry, Jamaican beef patty is easily recognised for its yellowish colour thanks to a combination of tasty turmeric and creamy butter mix, creating this flaky delight.

Jam-packed with fragrant beef infused with herbs and spices, this snack-sized taste of Jamaica is named the most popular convenience food on the island and proves to be a national favourite.

Juici Patties is renowned for serving up perfect Jamaican patties across the island across decades, offering a range of mouth-watering patties comprised of quality ingredients and authentic flavours, that even includes a vegetarian version.

Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee

Considered one of the best coffees in the world, Blue Mountain Coffee is grown on the Blue and John Crow Mountains in eastern Jamaica, the longest mountain on the island at 7402 feet.

Loved for its fragrant aroma, Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee has a rich, sweet taste without the bitterness found many other coffees.

Beyond its exceptional taste, the coffee’s boasts a number of potential health benefits, thanks to its vitamin and nutrient content. 

The highly anticipated annual Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee Festival takes place every March, providing coffee enthusiasts with the ultimate farm to cup (and plate) experience.

Visitors can learn about Jamaican coffee and culture, with arts and crafts showcases, music performances and tours to some of Jamaica’s best kept secrets.

With an abundance of globally acclaimed destinations and dishes to enjoy, this Caribbean Island is a true melting pot of fresh food, flavours, and warm hospitality.

Jamaica’s award-winning culinary scene offers something to satisfy even the most discerning of palates.

Most of us know Botswana as an ideal African travel and tourism country to invest in.

But, it clearly stands out as a reference in sustainable tourism in Africa.

37% of its land is under the protection of the authorities as national parks or wildlife management areas. It is to preserve the country’s wildlife and rich natural treasures.

In parallel, local communities receive support especially in the rural areas. It is to reap the benefits of ecotourism initiatives and infrastructure.

Thus it will be contributing to support social inclusion and economic development country-wide.

In addition, part of the revenues generated by tourism-related activities are re-invested in conservation programs.

Botswana boasts as one of the pioneer countries of sustainable tourism policies and practices in Africa.

It established a National Ecotourism Strategy as early as in 2002. That makes it one of the globally popular sustainable tourism destinations.

Wildlife sanctuaries are present there to save several endangered species such as rhinos and protect free-roaming elephant herds from poachers.

In the Okavango Delta, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and its surroundings.

For instance, the safari camps and lodges preserve the environment so that future generations and the local communities can continue to enjoy and benefit from sustainable commercial operations.

A carefully planned approach to tourism has led this industry to become over the years the second pillar of the economy of Botswana. The destination to be for the discerning international travellers!

The country is now home to one of the largest populations of elephants in an African state with more than 200,000.

Moreover, as part of the Botswana National Ecotourism Strategy (2002), an Ecotourism Certification System has been rolled out.

This is not only to encourage but also, support responsible environmental, social and cultural behavior by businesses operating in the country’s tourism industry.

It is also to ensure that they provide quality eco-friendly products to consumers.

They have set key environmentally responsible standards for businesses to comply with or even exceed them.

The approach of the Government of Botswana has since then been aiming at attracting high-income, low-volume tourism so as to minimize the impact on the natural landscape and heritage of the country.

Discover tourism investment opportunities at the first-ever Botswana Tourism Investment Summit jointly organized by the Botswana Tourism Organisation (BTO) and International Tourism Investment Corporation Ltd (ITIC) will take place on 22 to 24 November 2023 at the Gaborone International Convention Centre (GICC), Botswana.

It will be in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation (IFC). It is a member of the World Bank Group.

The summit will consist of sessions focusing on key challenges and trends and will act as a catalyst for a transformational change in the tourism landscape of Botswana.

The inaugural Communications, Media, and Tourism Training Workshop in Africa, held in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe from November 13-15, highlighted the increased significance of tourism and its potential for greater visibility beyond the sector. The three-day workshop centered on opportunities to integrate tourism into mainstream conversations while addressing ongoing challenges faced by communities, destinations, and the African region as a whole.

During the UNWTO‘s Communications, Media, and Tourism Training Workshop in Africa, the emphasis was on active learning for both participants and trainers, reflecting UNWTO’s collaborative approach to communications. The first day involved visits to three case studies around Victoria Falls, showcasing the impact of tourism:

• Tourism for Wildlife Conservation: A visit to Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust highlighted community-led conservation efforts, emphasizing where tourism supports wildlife protection and opportunities for improvement.

• Tourism for Development: Meetings with Umuzi Village leaders shed light on challenges faced by small destinations in accessing tourism benefits, particularly in outreach, communications, and promotion.

• Tourism for Nature: Exploring the rainforest in Victoria Falls National Park showcased tourism’s role in preserving ecosystems while underscoring its unrealized potential.

The UNWTO’s Africa workshop featured field trips as the foundation for interactive learning sessions and workshops. With 50 participants from 20 countries, the focus was on addressing key challenges in tourism communication, including media pitching, building relations, and narrative framing for tourism development. Experts from UNWTO and the media spectrum, including Meta, Channels TV, and TraveMedia Ireland, provided insights on mainstream media placement, social media’s role in tourism development, working with the media, and effective communication highlighting tourism’s impact on culture, heritage, and communities.

Solutions and debates
Participants, building on the insights gained from field trips, actively engaged in discussions and proposed solutions to challenges in pitching tourism to wider media, adapting to a changing media landscape, and broadening tourism beyond leisure. The discussions revealed common goals across diverse destinations but also underscored knowledge gaps. UNWTO expressed readiness to provide additional media training. The workshop also delved into crisis communications, leveraging diverse expertise to identify proactive measures and enhance preparedness.

Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare, has declared a state of emergency in response to a catastrophic cholera epidemic that has already claimed dozens of lives and resulted in over 7,000 suspected cases.

The city is plagued by the 2008 cholera outbreak, which resulted in a staggering death toll.

Health officials are facing severe hurdles in dealing with the spike in cases. The International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) reports a scarcity of health staff and crucial supplies needed to stop disease spread. The situation is especially critical in Harare’s high-density suburb of Kuwadzana, which has become the epicenter of the current outbreak, contributing to nearly half of the reported cases.

Cholera, an acute diarrheal infection caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, is usually spread by the intake of contaminated food or water. The absence of potable water has worsened the issue, making it harder to properly limit the outbreak.

The parallels established between the current epidemic and the horrific events of 2008 have increased public worry. The 2008 outbreak killed nearly 4,000 people and sickened at least 100,000 more, creating a collapse in basic services across the country.

Harare’s Mayor, Ian Makone, declared a state of emergency in response to the developing crisis, emphasising the gravity of the situation. According to the Ministry of Health, there are 7,398 suspected cases, 50 confirmed deaths, and 109 persons who are now hospitalised.

The IFRC cautions that the illness is quickly spreading, impacting 45 out of 62 districts and all ten provinces in Zimbabwe. Concerns have been raised that the outbreak may spread beyond the country’s borders, leading neighbouring nations such as Malawi, South Africa, and Mozambique to stay on high alert.

Zimbabwe’s health minister has proposed efforts to limit the epidemic, including the elimination of street food sellers and the delivery of potable water by trucks. A rapid and coordinated reaction is critical to averting a repetition of the horrific events of 2008 and protecting the health and well-being of the population, not just in Zimbabwe but also throughout the region. The scenario highlights the critical need for foreign assistance to handle the current health crisis as well as to develop long-term public health infrastructure in impacted communities.

Africa Travel Week (ATW) is inviting all travel and tourism media to submit their entries for the Africa Travel Week Media Awards by 30 January 2024. We also encourage nominations from the public for journalists whose work has significantly impacted travel journalism.

Now in its inaugural year, the ATW Media Awards 2024 are set to recognise top-tier travel journalism spotlighting Africa’s tourism landscape. As travel narratives continue to influence global perceptions, these awards champion the media professionals capturing Africa’s essence through compelling stories, striking imagery, and immersive videos.

The awards are open to all media practitioners, including journalists, bloggers, videographers, and photographers who produce content related to African tourism. Participants in the Africa Travel Week Media Awards may submit as many entries as they wish in four award categories at no charge. These include:

●             Sustainability Feature Award

●             Visual Tourism Award

●             Destination Feature Award

●             Tourism News Award

“The media plays a vital role in driving growth across Africa’s tourism industry while keeping us informed, updated, and inspired,” says Megan De Jager, Portfolio Director – Travel, Tourism & RX Africa Marketing.

“This is our chance to show appreciation to those who strive to share our continent’s travel news, remarkable stories, and experiences through outstanding journalism, captivating narratives, and imagery,” she adds.

All entries provided must have appeared in print or online between 1 January 2023 and 30 January 2024. Winners will be announced at the Africa Travel Week Travel Leaders Lunch. The date and location of the announcement will be communicated in advance.

“As a winner or finalist, participating in the Africa Travel Week Media Awards provides an opportunity to celebrate your hard work, enhance your reputation, and network with industry leaders from around the world,” De Jager adds.

“If you’re sitting on an exceptional piece of content related to African tourism, we’d love to see it. Don’t miss your chance to be recognised and to help shine a spotlight on Africa as a destination brimming with remarkable wildlife, places, and people,” she concludes.

The long-awaited Grand Egyptian Museum will be fully open by next May at the latest, the country’s tourism minister has pledged, but warned of price rises generally as the country improves facilities.

Ahmed Issa, Egypt’s minister of tourism and antiquities, said a soft opening of some parts would happen “probably later this year, maybe January”, with 200 items a day currently being installed. The official opening would be “between February and May” he said.

He said the museum had galleries “the length of three football pitches and could cope with 20,000 visitors a day. “We don’t get a fraction of that across the museums in Egypt.” The new Sphinx Airport, to the west of Cairo, is now open and ready to receive the expected increase in flights, he said, with easyJet and Wizz Air already operating there.

Issa said entry costs to the museum would be around $30, adding “The London Eye is £48.”

He signalled price increases across the country’s attractions. “In real terms the price of attractions in Egypt are below 2010. I am committed to getting prices back, adjusted for inflation, to 2010 levels. There is probably going to be another cycle of price increases in the next 12 months. We are committed to improving quality of services and we are going to charge for that.”

Issa said the country would receive 15 million tourists this year despite the situation in neighbouring Gaza. He added 2023 bookings were 32% above 2022 and were above 2019.

“It is a fraction of what we see is the demand for Egyptian product.” This future demand, he said, meant the industry had “to up its game”.

A new visitor centre at Cairo’s Pyramids will open later this year, with greener transport taking tourists to the site, while there are plans for high speed rail lines linking the Red Sea resorts and Alexandria with the capital.

Incentives would be given to hoteliers to expand, he said. “Today it is very difficult to get a room in Cairo, Luxor and Aswan. The number of Nile cruise rooms is up 40% over 15 months and still there are none available.” Her promised subsidised interest payments and tax incentives for developers.

Issa admitted bookings had been hit since the situation in Gaza began. “After October 7 we saw people delay their booking decision for maybe a couple of weeks, but we’ve seen a return to normal booking patterns. We’ve seen a decline in the non-beach product but that’s only 6% of our total tourism.”

He pledged more incentives to airlines and more fam trips. “I don’t want to see an A330 reduced to an A320, we are here to support you. “Maybe you will have lower load factors, but I am sure come mid-December the flights will be full again.”

Major destinations and source markets across Africa are expected to end 2023 ahead of pre-pandemic values in terms of value, with domestic tourism performing strongly, reveals new research published today.

The WTM Global Travel Report, in association with Tourism Economics, is published to mark the opening of this year’s WTM London, the world’s most influential travel and tourism event.

For 2023, the report predicts that African international inbound leisure will be down in volumes but up in value compared with 2019.

This year an estimated 43 million people will visit the continent, a 13% drop on the 49 million guests welcomed in 2019. However, despite the drop in volumes, the value of these trips is 103% ahead of what 2019’s business was worth.

As the report states, “the range of diverse countries has resulted in a varied picture” across the continent, and the inbound return for the three biggest markets illustrates the differences.

Market leader Egypt is slightly ahead, with 2023 at 101% of 2019 in value terms; Morocco “has made a strong recovery” and will end the year 130% ahead of pre-pandemic levels. South Africa is the region’s third largest inbound market and the one taking longest to recover – 2023 will come in at only 71% of 2019.

Domestic tourism for the region in 2023 is positive across the board, with all the top ten domestic markets, other than Nigeria, ahead of 2019 for value. South Africa is the biggest domestic market, and is ahead 104%. Number two Egypt is 111% up; third placed Algeria 134% up with Morocco completing the top five domestic markets, registering a 110% increase. Nigeria, which comes in at number four, is at 93% of 2019.

Next year will see the region build on its post-pandemic recovery although South African inbound will continue to fall short of 2019. However, the long-term picture for the region’s biggest market is positive. By 2033, the report expects that the value of inbound leisure to South Africa will be 143% ahead of 2024.

It also identifies Mozambique, Mali and Madagascar are high-growth markets, with increases of 161%, 167% and 162% respectively in the value of inbound leisure travel by 2033.

Juliette Losardo, Exhibition Director, World Travel Market London, said: “Africa has so much to offer domestic and inbound visitors and its importance as a source market for outbound visitors to other destinations is growing all the time.

“WTM London has always supported the region’s tourism industry, and we’re determined to step up our efforts across the board and to reinforce our message that tourism can be a global force for good, and nowhere is this truer than for Africa.”

During its Global Summit in Kigali, the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), in partnership with VFS Global, unveiled a report indicating that the African Travel & Tourism sector has the potential to contribute US$168 billion to the continent’s economy and generate over 18 million new jobs. The report, titled ‘Unlocking Opportunities for Travel & Tourism Growth in Africa,’ outlines three essential policies that could lead to annualized growth of 6.5%, resulting in a contribution exceeding US$350 billion.

The report includes a set of policies aimed at boosting tourism, facilitating visas, and enhancing air infrastructure in order to improve Africa’s growth. With 84 million foreign visitors in 2019, travel and tourism is a major industry in Africa, contributing over US$ 186BN to the continent’s GDP. Additionally, the sector is vital to employment, supporting 25 million people.

Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO, emphasized the remarkable growth of Africa’s Travel & Tourism sector during the global tourism body’s Global Summit in Kigali. She adds, “Growth potential for Travel & Tourism in Africa is massive. It has already more than doubled since 2000, and with the right policies could unlock an additional US$168 billion in the next decade.”

Zubin Karkaria, Founder & CEO of VFS Global, expressed excitement about the partnership with WTTC. He stated, “Having established our presence in Africa since 2005 we are today the trusted partner of 38 governments who we serve across 55 cities in 35 countries in Africa.”

This report explores the historical development of the travel and tourism industry in Africa. It’s a tale of overcoming obstacles head-on, from the 2008 Global Financial Crisis to the setbacks brought on by disease outbreaks and unstable political environments. The global body projects that 2023 will see the creation of almost 1.8 million new jobs and a near-full recovery, falling just 1.9% short of 2019 levels.
Opportunities for Africa The report underscores opportunities in the African Travel & Tourism sector, including strategic investments, enhanced connectivity, streamlined visa processes, adopting low-carbon energy, and improving water efficiency. These initiatives could unlock sustainable growth, job creation, and economic development in the region.

Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club and Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy together with Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club have unveiled about their effective introduction of reticulated giraffes once again back to Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy after 40 years of local extermination.

The six giraffes 4 females and 2 males were taken in from Lolomarik Ranch and transferred them at Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy to experience the wild.

With a strong aim on helping community conservation, instruction and authorization programs, sustainable natural resource management efforts are being introduced by MKWC and the well-known Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club with an intention to create a circular economy on the slants of Mount Kenya. In giraffes, the reticulated giraffe is one of the four exotic species. Three out of four species of giraffes namely the Reticulated, Masai, and the Northern (Rothschild/Nubian Giraffe) can be found in Kenya.

ALL through Africa, the number of giraffes has been decreasing and the global population has dropped by almost 30%. Presently, in world, there are about 117,000 giraffes. Kenya was home to over 71,000 Masai giraffes, in the last 3 decades, and this number has dropped to 45,400.

More concerning fact is that the number in terms of reticulated giraffes in Kenya have dropped by almost 50% in the last 35 years i.e., from 36,000 to 16,000. These decreases are mainly motivated by human factors mainly loss of habitat.

Kenya and Angola have become the latest African countries to announce plans to ease visa restrictions as part of efforts to improve air connectivity and spur bilateral trade.

The move follows a similar agreement announced earlier this month between neighbors Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Kenya-Angola pact was confirmed after talks in Nairobi between Kenyan President William Ruto and his Angola counterpart João Lourenço.

Ruto says trade between the nations has been on the rise in the past four years, but more needs to be done to unlock the underlying potential.

To encourage the resumption of direct air service, a visa-free regime is being put in place to ease the free movement of people.

Angolans coming to Kenya will not require a visa, Ruto says. Angola will equally consider the same for Kenyans.

The plans come as Angola prepares to welcome the opening of a new $3.8 billion airport in Luanda.

Agostinho Neto International Airport, located about 26 mi. from the center of Luanda, will include a terminal building capable of handling 15 million passengers per year, a 13,780-ft. northern runway and 12,467-ft. southern runway, as well as a hotel, shops and restaurants.

The first phase will also be able to handle 130,000 tons of cargo annually.

Speaking to Aviation Week in September, Coordinator of the Operational Office of the New Luanda International Airport José Paulo Nobrega says the new airport will be a powerful economic driver.

Its operation will create thousands of direct and indirect jobs, the creation of the airport city will be a center for development in our city, focusing on sustainability and urban mobility, he adds.

Earlier this month, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo also agreed to adopt a visa-free regime, as well as signing a memorandum of understanding to increase trade.

Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo are linked by one nonstop route at present, with Uganda Airlines offering five flights per week between Entebbe, Uganda, and Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, using CRJ 900s.