As Bermuda puts the final touches to a discount tourist programme for the winter aimed at luring Americans shell-shocked from the recent terrorist attacks, the Island's Caribbean rivals are already slashing prices and stepping up their advertising campaigns.

Tourism Minister David Allen announced in the immediate aftermath of the September 11 attacks in New York and Washington that Bermuda was suspending its planned US marketing campaign until some point in October when it judges that Americans will be more ready to travel.

But, some of Bermuda's Caribbean rivals believe the time is right to re-enter the US market with sensitive and sympathetic adverts pitched at Americans still stunned by the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.

This week, Jamaica and Puerto Rico began television advertising campaigns to try to salvage a season that has been decimated by falling visitor numbers from the US.

Jamaica has doubled its marketing campaign in the US to around $5 million and on Wednesday it ran a 30-second advert on CNN, ending with reggae legend Bob Marley singing One Love.

Air Jamaica, which lost $4 million in the week after the attack when US flights were grounded, is offering up to 35 percent off flights and accommodation in certain resorts in Montego Bay, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, Grand Cayman, Barbados, Grenada and St. Lucia.

Jamaica, which attracts around one million US visitors each year, has seen hotel occupancy rates slump from around 60 percent to 30 percent.

Jamaica Tourist Board regional manager for the southern US, Latin America and the Caribbean, Charles Handal, said: "Jamaica is in a serious situation. We are hoping that with this campaign it will build some of what we have lost. The whole Caribbean has been affected."

On Wednesday, Puerto Rico began a similar marketing drive in the US. The $1 million Puerto Rico: Open Arms campaign expresses the country's solidarity with the US.

Puerto Rico is reducing fees for airlines and cruise ships as a sweetener to boost numbers. It has done much better than most countries in the region, with occupancy rates slipping by just eight percent.

Deals available on the Internet from the US include a flight and four nights at the Bolongo Beach Bay Club and Villas in St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands from $687 per person.

The Bermuda Alliance for Tourism announced on Tuesday that hotels will be cutting rates, and restaurants, shops, transportation and activities' providers are expected to follow suit so that extra-value packages can be offered to the US.

The new destination will emphasise the Island's close proximity to the US and its tranquillity and safety.