We Believe in a Way of Traveling the Country while Giving Back to Its People.
Our online community and travel platform, Real Jamaica, promotes responsible travel and support for the local economy through our motto, ‘travel local, support locals’. We aim to connect locals and travelers and facilitate sustainable tourism by showcasing accommodations, tour guides, natural attractions, restaurants, rentals, events, and provide travel advice and experiences on our blog. Our platform is designed to help visitors experience the authentic culture and beauty of Jamaica while contributing to its communities.
The life of locals in Jamaica can be challenging, with increasing costs for essentials such as food and housing, and limited job opportunities. Unfortunately, many well-intentioned tourists do not contribute much to the local economy.
Why Real Jamaica?
The Problem
Only a small portion of tourists (about 10%) who visit Jamaica stay in family-owned guesthouses and use local facilities. Major promotional channels do not feature local tourism, leaving only word-of-mouth. Being sometimes out of earshot, the majority of visitors book all-inclusive holidays which repress local input in tourism – one of the largest industries for foreign exchange.
Jamaica is often vilified as a dangerous country to explore. Nevertheless, Jamaica is full of warm-hearted, open, and welcoming people. Travellers can experience a safe and beautiful Jamaica without relying on a sterile resort.
The Vision
We believe in a way of traveling the country while giving back to its people – a kind of social tourism that isn’t hungry for profit but rather for progress. Locals with small businesses should be able to benefit from tourism just like larger, foreign corporations operating locally without investing locally.
Our Mission
We want to break toxic clichés by providing space for exploration without scouring away the beauty of the island. Both online and offline we are facilitating communication between trustful facilities, visitors, and lovers-at-heart. Real Jamaica strives to become the number one platform for sustainable tourism in Jamaica.
With the Real Jamaica network we want to shorten the distance amongst locals and travelers, forming connections around the corner and around the world. From born-and-raised to curious-yet-inexperienced – everyone has space to enrich, ask, and inspire.
Support the Project or Join Us!
To achieve our goals and create change in the tourism industry that actually matters, we need help from like-minded people. You can contact us here for collaborations or to contribute a blog post, photos and other information. If you’re interested in joining our team, we're looking forward hearing from you!
Work with Us