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The 'Accidental Tourist,' American Joe Hill, who was convinced to visit Jersey after he mistakenly joined a local Facebook group, will be travelling to Jersey next April after more than 100 Islanders rallied to raise £1,200 to cover his travel costs.
Joe and his girlfriend Amanda are due to arrive in Jersey on 16 April for a five-day stay and are in for a treat with a lot of freebies from local businesses, including a stay at one of the Dolan Group’s four-star pads offered by hotelier Alex Dolan, who started the fundraising.
Joe's Jersey story started after he mistakenly joined the 12,000 strong 'Good or Bad Jersey businesses' Facebook page several years ago. Despite admitting to only having the “foggiest idea” of where Jersey actually is, Joe remained a member of the page. After years of reading about Jersey's best and worst places to eat and other businesses reviews, Joe decided to profess his love for the page, which he said was his favourite.
Pictured: Joe's Facebook post which kickstarted his Jersey story.
The American probably didn't expect to receive over 900 likes in a matter of hours. His post has since been liked by over 1,500 people. After many Islanders filled Joe in on the best places to visit and urged him to come and visit the island - with Dennis Shore writing "Get on a plane Joe. How mental would that be as a story to tell your grandchildren? 'Well, what happened was, back in the day when you could only communicate by Facebook and messenger!!!!! 100,000 alcoholics clinging to this little rock we now call home, invited me and grandma for a holiday!!!'" - hotelier Alex Dolan of Dolan Hotels started a crowdfunding page.
96 people, including Assistant Minister Deputy Murray Norton, chipped in to bring Joe here and raised over £1,220 in just over a week. Commenting at the time, Joe thanked islanders for their donations saying: “Me and my girlfriend are wicked excited to take advantage of everything that's been offered and meet everyone who's offered it.”
Pictured: Joe and his girlfriend, Amanda, will take to the skies next April to come and meet islanders.
And the couple have been offered the lot, from breakfast, lunch and dinner at local streetfood stalls and restaurants, to jet skiing sessions, dolphin watching trips, pints at local pubs as well as Jersey ice cream and Royal potatoes. A local photographer also offered to document his trip which should include a visit to a German bunker.
Plane tickets have now been paid for and Joe and Amanda should arrive on 16 April. Thousands of people are already eager to meet them and show them exactly what is the 'Jersey Way.'
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