The six-day programme at Princess Resorts from 10–15 October will unite awards and industry events spanning travel, MICE, technology, cruise, culinary tourism, social media, villas and resilience.
World Travel Week Jamaica 2026 will take place from 10–15 October at Princess Resorts in Negril, bringing together nine international tourism and hospitality platforms. — Credit: World Travel Awards
- World Travel Week Jamaica 2026 will run from 10–15 October at Princess Resorts in Negril.
- Nine international platforms will cover tourism awards, MICE, technology, cruise, culinary tourism, social media, villas, showcases and resilience.
- World Travel Awards Caribbean & The Americas will take place on 11 October, followed by several specialist awards ceremonies during the week.
- Tourism resilience will be a central theme, including the Global Tourism Resilience Awards.
(NEWS) KINGSTON, Jamaica, 2026-Sep-28 — /Travel PR News/ — Jamaica is bringing a cluster of international tourism, hospitality and travel-industry events under one banner this October with the launch of World Travel Week Jamaica 2026, a six-day programme scheduled for 10–15 October at Princess Resorts in Negril.
Unveiled on World Tourism Day, the new gathering will combine nine international platforms spanning travel awards, meetings and events, tourism technology, cruising, culinary tourism, social media, villas and resilience. The format is designed to bring sectors that increasingly overlap in the visitor economy into a single destination and programme.
The week opens its major awards schedule with the World Travel Awards Caribbean & The Americas Gala Ceremony on 11 October, bringing together destinations, hotels, airlines, tourism organisations and travel brands from across the Caribbean and the Americas.
On 12 October, Princess Grand Jamaica is scheduled to host three specialist ceremonies: the World MICE Awards, covering meetings, incentives, conferences and events; the World Travel Tech Awards; and the World Cruise Awards.
The programme continues on 13 October with the World Social Media Awards, followed on 14 October by the World Culinary Awards. The wider schedule also includes the World Villa Awards, the 10 Best Showcase and the Global Tourism Resilience Awards.
Resilience moves to the centre of the programme
Tourism resilience is positioned as one of the central themes of the week, reflecting Jamaica’s advocacy in the field through Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett and the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre. The Global Tourism Resilience Awards will recognise people, businesses, organisations and communities for their ability to anticipate, respond to and recover from disruption.
The launch follows Bartlett’s participation as co-chair of the World Economic Forum’s inaugural Beyond Tourism Day in Geneva, where government, business and civil-society representatives considered tourism’s role in resilient growth, economic opportunity and destination development.
Bartlett said the Jamaica gathering would seek to continue that discussion while combining recognition of tourism achievement with debate about the industry’s future. He invited tourism ministers, destination leaders, private-sector executives, entrepreneurs, academics, technology innovators, hospitality leaders and community representatives from the Caribbean and further afield to participate.
Graham Cooke, Founder of World Travel Awards, described World Travel Week as an evolution of the organisation’s work over more than three decades. He said the programme reflects growing connections between hospitality, technology, aviation, destinations, food, culture, social media and resilience rather than treating them as isolated parts of travel.
The timing also places Jamaica immediately after the WTTC Global Summit in Malta, scheduled for 7–9 October, potentially allowing international tourism delegates to continue industry discussions in the Caribbean from 10 October.
According to the World Travel Awards launch announcement, the Jamaica Tourist Board’s official events calendar lists World Travel Week at Princess Grand Jamaica in Negril from 10–15 October 2026.
