Jamaican named Caribbean hotelier of the year
Published:Wednesday | January 4, 2023 | 12:14 AMDave Rodney/Gleaner Writer
Shernette Crichton, the general manager of the Half Moon Resort in Montego Bay, has been named Caribbean Hotelier of the Year for 2023 in the recently announced Caribbean Travel Awards in Florida.
Crichton has enjoyed a long career in the hospitality industry, working in nearly every area of operation at the iconic Half Moon luxury brand where she was named general manager in 2019. She is one of very few female general managers for a major resort in the Caribbean, and the first for the Half Moon.
Crichton was hailed by the Caribbean Travel Awards (CTA) for steering the recovery of the resort following the pandemic in less than three years, while simultaneously managing the opening of an exciting new wing at the resort called the Eclipse. The beachfront annex boasts 57 luxurious suites, two restaurants, three bars, a spa and other amenities, further escalating the Half Moon options and placing the beach hideaway among the best in the Caribbean. Forbes Magazine has also named the Half Moon Resort as one of the best hotels in the world for 2022.
“This is truly a great honour for me,” Crichton, a hospitality and tourism management graduate from Florida International University, told The Gleaner. “I attribute my success to my faith in God, to a very supportive family and a fantastic team here at the Half Moon,” she continued, smiling proudly. “We are shining brightly in all areas of our operation, and we used the pandemic as an opportunity to upgrade and improve.”
Asked about the visible increase in African American visitors to Half Moon, Crichton attributes the surge to a management partnership with Sheila Johnson, co-founder of BET, CEO of Salamander Hotels & Resorts and the first billionaire African American woman in the United States.
“And our own Jamaicans, too, have been coming in steady numbers and loving the new Eclipse,” the Savanna-la-Mar born hotelier hastened to add. Half Moon is currently a member of the Salamander Group that also includes the Aurora Resort in Anguilla, British West Indies.