Blue and John Crow mountains getting more visitors

The inscription of the Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage List has led to an increase in visitors to the area.

One of 32 'mixed' World Heritage sites, the park is located on the eastern end of Jamaica and spans sections of the parishes of St Andrew, St Thomas, Portland and a small section of southeast St Mary.

According to Dr Susan Otuokon, executive director of the Jamaica Conservation and Development Trust, there has been "an increased interest in visiting the park, particularly from overseas visitors".

"We get a lot of emails with questions because people are seeing the site being promoted on the world heritage media," Otuokon said.

The park's main recreational sites are Holywell, the Blue Mountain Peak trail and Portland Gap.

"There is a special type of visitor who is interested in world heritage, who is willing to travel long distances and willing to go through more rugged and not as luxurious accommodation and transportation to get to these very special locations," she said.

"We are planning to tap into that market," she continued, noting that the inscription has improved the visibility and promotion of the park.

The 26,000-hectare park was the first to put Jamaica on the world heritage stage. It was inscribed as a world heritage site in 2015. The park is home to unique birds, frogs, the Homerus Swallowtail butterfly, the Jamaican coney and four of Jamaica's six endemic snakes.