Jamaican Hotels Hit by Clashes

Jamaican hotels are improving security in a bid to reassure guests after clashes in capital city Kingston led to room cancellations.

The Caribbean island’s hotels reported 300 room cancellations, according to Jamaica’s Hotel and Tourism Association.

The island declared a state of emergency on 23 May after violence broke out in Kingston to protest against the extradition of alleged drug baron and gunrunner Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke.

Marriott International’s Ritz-Carlton hotel in Montego Bay reported that many guests cancelled their reservations while others will be relocated to safer locations after 44 people were killed during the violence.

Seven Jamaican hotels owned by Sandals Resorts International said they are unaffected by the violence, according to Bloomberg.