From Negril to MoBay: The Great Party Migration скачать в хорошем качестве

From Negril to MoBay: The Great Party Migration

Dream Weekend Bids Negril Farewell, Eyes ‘New Beginnings’ in Montego Bay After 16 years of electrifying parties, sun-soaked beaches, and a massive influx of visitors to Negril, the iconic Dream Weekend festival is preparing for a major shift — moving its base to Montego Bay. The announcement was made Wednesday night at a press conference held at Pier 1 in Montego Bay, themed “New Beginnings,” where organisers outlined the reasons for the relocation and the vision for the festival’s future. Kamal Bankay, chairman of Dream Entertainment, told journalists that the move is part of the event’s natural evolution. He said The Dream Weekend now is not the Dream Weekend of 10 years ago, as it has has evolved. He had noted in a Gleaner interview that Post-COVID, Dream transitioned to a fully VIP experience, with food and drink included at all events, curated menus for each party, and a push toward all-inclusive accommodations. But to do this well, we have to listen to patrons — and they’ve been telling us Montego Bay makes sense According to Bankay, logistical and infrastructural constraints in Negril have become increasingly difficult to overcome. Accommodation shortages, steep room price increases, venue shrinkage, and transportation challenges have all weighed heavily on the festival’s ability to grow. He had said that most guests are international and fly into Montego Bay, "then face an hour-and-a-half drive to Negril. They aren’t happy about that. And when we hit capacity in Negril, we literally cannot expand — we’re not venue owners; we work with what the city provides.” The loss of key venues has compounded the problem. Cool Runnings Water Park, the home of Dream’s biggest event, Wet n Wild, has been sold, removing a space that could hold upwards of 9,000 patrons. “We’ve had years where we pushed against the limits, but with shrinking venue capacity, we can’t break through that ceiling. “Montego Bay offers us more room to grow.” Jason Russell, owner and general manager of Pier 1 and president of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce, has long championed the idea of bringing Dream Weekend to the Second City. He said that he had been nudging them to consider Montego Bay as the tourism capital has the accommodation, the infrastructure, and the energy to host something of this scale. Russell, who describes himself as a “Dreamer,” said the move represents not just a location change, but a transformation in how the festival can deliver its experience. “Dream Weekend is evolving, and Montego Bay has the capacity to support that evolution.”