Tuesday, April 25, 2023
The Caribbean lost a full tenth of its collective GDP in 2020 — the worst year of the pandemic — and the big reason was that tourism, which accounts for a full 14 percent of that GDP, dropped by two-thirds.
But travel data firms now show Caribbean tourism enjoying the world’s best post-pandemic recovery.
In the first two months of this year, the Caribbean’s international arrivals numbers were down only 1% compared to the same period in 2019.
By contrast, Europe’s numbers were still 25% behind — and Asia’s were 54% short.
Leading the way was the U.S. Virgin Islands, which saw a 22% arrivals increase, although the U.S. territory’s pandemic recovery benefitted from U.S.-supplied vaccines and economic relief.
These are impressive results for our region, said Nicola Madden-Greig, president of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association.
One key reason appears to be a jump in post-pandemic travel to the Caribbean from South America — a region that usually sends its tourists to Miami.
That shift is due largely to the fact that Panama is now a more active airport connection hub for South Americans to Caribbean destinations.
A travel data firm has uncovered the growth of Panama City as a gateway to the Caribbean for trips from South America.
Miami is, on the contrary, losing its market share for connections to the region from South America, said its vice president.
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