Free wi-fi at Dunn's River providing more than just internet access

Visitors to Dunn’s River Falls and Park are helping to shape the future of Jamaica’s tourism industry every time they complete a short survey to access the attraction’s complimentary Wi-Fi service.

For visitors, it is simply the final step before getting online. For the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), however, every response provides valuable insights into visitor experiences, preferences and spending habits, helping to guide tourism planning, product development and future investment.

Through a partnership involving the TEF, the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) and the Urban Development Corporation (UDC), free Wi-Fi was introduced at Dunn's River Falls and Park as a way of benefiting both visitors and the tourism sector.

Recognising that today’s travellers want to remain connected as they explore the island, whether travelling from their hotels or stepping off a cruise ship, the partners saw an opportunity to combine that demand with tourism research.

Director, Research and Risk Management, TEF, Gis’elle Jones Shepherd, tells JIS News that the initiative was developed in response to the high cost of collecting reliable tourism data.

“The reality is data collection can be very expensive… and because we do our projects based on data, we are going to need enough to be able to say it is statistically significant to make these decisions and spend,” Mrs. Jones Shepherd explains.

“The question became, how do we... not spend too much money but at the same time be able to extract data from our visitors... and the answer was in Wi-Fi. Let us give them Wi-Fi connectivity,” she adds.

Mrs. Jones Shepherd notes that while visitors are asked to complete a short survey before accessing the complimentary Wi-Fi service, the information collected is protected and used solely to support tourism research and planning.

She further emphasises that the initiative benefits all three organisations involved, as visitors enjoy seamless internet access while exploring one of Jamaica’s premier attractions.

She notes that the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) benefits from authentic, user-generated content, as travellers instantly share photos and videos of their experiences online, while for TEF, each completed survey provides valuable information that supports evidence-based decision-making across the tourism sector.

“Being able to post and get that organic statement of ‘you must be here, you're missing out' directly from the visitor is what JTB wants,” says Mrs. Jones Shepherd.

She notes that today’s travellers are increasingly influenced by the experiences shared by fellow visitors rather than traditional advertising.

“People want to know from their peers what they thought, not what the Government or the owner of the attraction... is putting out,” Mrs. Jones Shepherd points out.

The Director, Research and Risk Management further indicates that for the TEF, the Wi-Fi initiative has evolved into much more than a means of collecting visitor feedback.

She notes that, initially, the platform was used to administer individual surveys on specific topics. However, it now facilitates five surveys that rotate weekly, gathering information on visitor experiences, tourism demand, spending patterns, transportation and innovation.

“This allows us to keep a pulse on what visitors are feeling, thinking [and] demanding, so that we can know what we need to be creating for our visitors or know what issues we need to address or what data we need to be sharing with other entities, so that they can also address any gaps or seize any opportunities that they may see,” says Mrs. Jones Shepherd.

She tells JIS News that, since its launch in 2025, the initiative has been generating encouraging results.

“From January to May [of this year], we had 6,037 new devices connecting. With that, it means that those people are responding to surveys… and we are really excited about that” Mrs. Jones Shepherd says.

She further highlights that the surveys explore issues such as whether visitors prefer cash or contactless payment options, how they rate infrastructure, including roads, signage and lighting, and what motivated them to choose Jamaica as their destination.

Additionally, the surveys seek to determine whether a visitor’s experience matches their expectations.

The Director, Research and Risk Management says these insights will help guide investment decisions and support programmes that encourage innovation within the tourism sector.

“We can only do that if we know where the demand is,” she shares. While the surveys primarily capture feedback from overseas visitors, it is also providing insights into the experiences and preferences of local patrons.

Mrs. Jones Shepherd notes that Jamaicans account for about four per cent of users accessing the free Wi-Fi service, but says their responses remain valuable.

“We need to know what Jamaicans want,” she says.

With the Dunn’s River initiative proving successful, the TEF is now looking to expand the concept beyond attractions.

“We are looking to do something more in the public sphere… maybe an Ocho Rios hip strip or a Montego Bay hip strip,” says Mrs. Jones Shepherd, adding that these locations will enable the TEF to gather feedback from an even broader cross-section of stopover visitors and cruise passengers.

With plans to expand the initiative beyond Dunn’s River Falls and Park, the TEF hopes to capture even more real-time visitor feedback, ensuring that future tourism investments and experiences continue to reflect the needs and expectations of both international and local travellers.

By Shanna K. Salmon