Montego Bay, St James, 20 June 2026
RIU Hotels and Resorts’ growth from a single Negril property to seven hotels across Jamaica shows rising international confidence in the country, Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness said as the Spanish chain marked 25 years on the island.
Dr Holness was speaking at RIU Jamaica’s 25th anniversary celebration at RIU Montego Bay on Thursday, 18 June.
From one resort to seven
RIU opened its first Jamaican hotel, RIU Palace Tropical Bay in Negril, in 2001. The company now runs seven hotels with more than 4,200 rooms and welcomes around 500,000 guests a year.
The Prime Minister said that first investment was an expression of confidence in Jamaica, and that each one since had reinforced it. He argued that countries now compete for visitors, businesses, investment and talent, and that Jamaica must keep strengthening the qualities that make it a destination of choice.
The numbers behind the brand
Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett said RIU has put more than US$750 million into Jamaica over the quarter century. He noted it was the first Spanish chain to make the island a principal base for Caribbean expansion, and praised its support for staff and communities after Hurricane Melissa.
Managing Director Joan Trian Riu said that over the past five years the company has paid more than $14.3 billion in taxes and social security contributions and about $12 billion in salaries, and has spent $66 billion with Jamaican suppliers. He added that 99 per cent of its workforce is Jamaican.
Spain’s Ambassador to Jamaica, José María Fernández López de Turiso, said Spanish companies are now among Jamaica’s strongest investment partners.
What it means for the property market
Large hotel groups are among the biggest drivers of jobs and spending along the north and west coasts. Sustained investment of this kind supports demand for housing and rentals in resort areas such as Montego Bay and Negril, as workers look for homes within reach of their jobs.
For landlords, investors and first-time buyers in tourism parishes, the health of the hotel sector is worth watching closely, since it influences both rental demand and the wider local economy.
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