The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), headquartered in Barbados, has announced a significant surge in visitor arrivals across the region in 2023. According to their latest report, international visitor numbers increased by an estimated 14.3 percent, marking a continuation of the positive recovery trend observed in the tourism sector.
Presenting the findings of the “Caribbean Tourism Performance Review 2023,” CTO Secretary General Dona Regis-Prosper credited the rise to sustained demand for outbound travel from the United States, the Caribbean’s primary source market, and the improved tourism infrastructure within the destinations. Strategic marketing initiatives and increased airlift capacity between the region and its source markets also contributed to the overall improvement, although distribution among destinations varied.
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Regis-Prosper highlighted the resilience of global tourism recovery, with the Caribbean surpassing pre-pandemic arrival numbers by a modest 0.8 percent, outperforming many other global regions. Preliminary data indicated approximately 32.2 million tourist visits to the Caribbean in 2023, marking an increase of four million compared to 2022. This growth trend has been consistent over the past 33 months, steadily approaching pre-pandemic levels.
The report revealed that several Caribbean destinations significantly exceeded or moderately surpassed their 2019 arrival benchmarks. Eleven destinations, including Anguilla, Aruba, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico, performed better than in 2019, with the majority recovering over 50 percent of their pre-pandemic arrivals. Additionally, multiple destinations achieved record levels of tourist arrivals in a single year.
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In terms of markets, only the US market fully recovered, with Europe and Canada reaching 88.2 percent and 88.1 percent recovery rates, respectively. The United States accounted for approximately 16.3 million stay-over arrivals, representing a 12.7 percent annual growth rate and surpassing pre-pandemic arrivals by 4.2 percent.
The Canadian market also showed significant growth, with an estimated three million Canadian tourist visits in 2023, marking a 46.1 percent increase compared to 2022. Increased air service from major Canadian cities to Caribbean destinations played a crucial role in driving up visitor numbers, according to the CTO.
Source: Barbados Today
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