The Caribbean Meeting & Incentive Travel Exchange (CMITE) ended on a high note in Jamaica on Sunday, October 10, at the Iberostar Grand Hotel Rose Hall. The invitation-only, appointment-based event, organized by Questex Media Group LLC in collaboration with the Society of Incentive Travel Executives (Site), served to bridge 50 Caribbean suppliers with 50 top meeting and incentive buyers from North America and China.

“With Jamaica serving as host for the inaugural Caribbean Meeting & Incentive Travel Exchange, this was an ideal opportunity for A-list buyers who book the Caribbean to witness the destination’s growing tourism product and our ability to cater to the needs of groups of all sizes,” said Marcia Bullock-Jobson, the Jamaica Tourist Board’s Regional Director, Groups & Conventions. “An event of this nature also helps to position the entire Caribbean region as the epicenter for meetings and incentives groups.”

Many participating buyers were impressed with the format of CMITE, which enabled them to explore the destination’s meeting facilities, especially in light of the anticipated opening of the Montego Bay Convention Centre. The event allowed buyers to schedule daily one-to-one appointments with suppliers, as well as participate in optional site visits to Jamaica’s hotel and resort facilities. Suppliers included hotels, resorts, spas, destinations, tour operators, destination management companies and cruise lines from the entire Caribbean.

“I have not been to Jamaica for 10 years, and once I got back here I wondered why I waited so long,” said Caroline Johnson, a U.S. buyer. “Jamaica is beautiful, and the hospitality is beyond anything you experience anywhere else. CMITE has allowed me to reschedule a meeting for Jamaica in May of next year for 100 people in the financial sector. I’m very pleased about the improvements that have taken place in the product sector of Jamaica’s tourism, and that will make my job of selling much easier.”

By special request, buyers from China were also invited by the Jamaica Tourist Board to participate in CMITE. Linda Ruan, who was among the six-member Chinese delegation noted, “We were very impressed with the show and the new developments here in Jamaica. We have been quietly trying to grow the Jamaican market in China, and what we have seen and experienced here will make our job much easier. CMITE is a wonderful concept and I’m certain that Jamaica will be one of the more popular destinations in our list of countries being sold to the MICE marketplace.”