Given the challenges facing the global tourist industry, sector leaders will converge tomorrow on Jamaica’s tourist capital of Montego Bay for the second annual Tourism Outlook Seminar at the Ritz Carlton Rose Hall Hotel. This year’s event builds on the inaugural seminar held in Kingston last year where local and international stakeholders within the industry gathered to discuss issues critical to Jamaica’s development and devise strategies to move the industry forward.

Thanks to the exchange rate with the U.S. dollar, trips to South Africa are now 30 percent less than they were last year. Top resorts and tour operators offer several included amenities.

The Holiday Inn Resort Baruna Bali will become the first location in Indonesia to have a Holiday Inn resort. The 195-room property, scheduled to open this March, is the only hotel in the area to have direct access to the beach.

The U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism unveiled its brand new Website, VisitUSVI.com last week.

Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett, has advised business owners to pursue smarter, more effective marketing strategies in order to maintain market share during these turbulent economic times.

Tourism Australia’s annual event, G’Day USA Australia Week, a celebration of Australian culture, food and travel, launched Jan. 13 in Los Angeles. The event also visited San Francisco and wrapped up on Jan. 24 in New York.