Tourism in the Caribbean maintains strong growth, surpassing pre-pandemic levels

This represents a 6.1% increase compared to 2023 and 6.9% above pre-pandemic levels, marking the second consecutive year the region has surpassed the 2019 benchmark.

The CTO's "Caribbean Tourism Performance Review 2024" report highlights the region's resilience and enduring appeal, driven by factors such as strong demand from the United States, a recovering Canadian market, and improved air connectivity.

Highlights of the report:

Overall Growth: The Caribbean recorded approximately 34.2 million international tourist arrivals (overnight visitors) in 2024, an increase of 6.1% over 2023 and 6.9% over 2019. 

Top Arrivals: The Dominican Republic remained the Caribbean's most visited destination in 2024, with 8.5 million tourists. Jamaica followed with 2.9 million arrivals, while Cuba (2.2 million), the Bahamas (1.9 million), Aruba (1.4 million), and Puerto Rico (1 million) recorded the highest numbers. Together, these six destinations accounted for approximately 56% of all visitor arrivals to the region.

Year-over-year growth: The largest year-over-year growth in tourist arrivals was recorded in Montserrat, with an increase of 29.4%, followed by St. Vincent and the Grenadines (27.2%), Belize (22.8%), and Curaçao (20.3%). These destinations recorded the largest relative increases in visitor numbers in the Caribbean in 2024.
Pre-pandemic growth: Compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019, Curaçao emerged as the best-performing destination with an increase of 51.1 percent, followed by St. Maarten with growth of 48 percent and 41.8 percent in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Source markets:

The United States remained the largest source market, with approximately 16.8 million arrivals, a 3.5% increase over 2023 and 7.9% above pre-pandemic levels. 

Canadian arrivals reached 3.3 million, an increase of 4.0% compared to 2023, although still slightly below 2019 levels. 

European arrivals showed slower growth, increasing 1.4% to 5.3 million, representing 89.4% of 2019 levels. 

Driven by ongoing efforts to improve air connectivity and services across the region, intra-Caribbean travel experienced growth in 2024. Caribbean residents took an estimated 1.6 million tourism trips within the region, an increase of 5.1% over 2023, though still only 79.2% of pre-pandemic levels recorded in 2019.

The South American market recorded the strongest growth in 2024, with 2 million arrivals by the end of the year, representing a 17.8% increase. This sustained growth translated into a 19.7% increase compared to 2019 arrivals. Improved political and economic stability, along with strong travel demand in key markets such as Argentina, Brazil, and Colombia, contributed to these results.

Cruise Sector: The Caribbean cruise industry experienced a significant rebound, with 33.7 million cruise visits in 2024, a 10.3% increase over 2023 and a 10.9% increase over pre-pandemic levels. 

Hotel Sector: The Caribbean hotel sector also performed strongly, with occupancy rates reaching 66.6%, up 0.8% year-over-year, and the Average Daily Rate (ADR) increasing 4.2% to US$437.02.

Challenges and perspectives:

Tourism in the Caribbean is expected to continue growing in 2025. However, due to prevailing economic uncertainty and a slowdown in key source markets during the first quarter of the year, the pace of growth is projected to be more moderate than previous forecasts suggested, said Aliyyah Shakeer, Director of Research at the CTO. The CTO now forecasts that overnight visitor arrivals will increase by 2% to 5%, reaching approximately 35 million. The outlook for the cruise sector remains positive, with cruise arrivals expected to grow by 5% to 7%, approaching 36 million visitors.

“The continued growth of the Caribbean is a testament to the strength of our regional collaboration and the enduring appeal of our destinations,” said Dona Regis-Prosper, Secretary General of the Caribbean Tourism Organization.

Despite geopolitical uncertainty and global economic challenges, our sector has demonstrated remarkable resilience. To maintain this momentum, we must redouble our efforts in strategic investments, innovative partnerships, and sustainable practices that protect our people, our culture, and our environment. The future of Caribbean tourism is not only bright, but it is in our hands to shape it, he added.

Source: Caribbean Tourism Organization.