U.S. Travelers Flock to Caribbean Hotspots Including Costa Rica and Puerto Rico for Winter 2024/2025

Published on October 2, 2024

This winter, the Caribbean continues to captivate American tourists, with Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, and the Mexican Caribbean poised to capitalize on this enduring appeal, according to Mabrian, a leader in global travel intelligence and a subsidiary of The Data Appeal Company – Almawave Group.

Mabrian’s analysis leverages its proprietary Share of Searches Index, measuring travel interest through flight search data across the top 20 U.S. airports—which represent 85% of the U.S.’s international air connectivity. This data spans searches for travel from November 2024 to February 2025 to leading Caribbean destinations including the Mexican Caribbean, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Barbados, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and the Bahamas.

The United States, a longstanding vital market for the Caribbean, especially in the winter, saw an influx of roughly 16.3 million stay-over visitors in 2023, marking a 12.7% increase from the previous year, according to the Caribbean Tourism Association (CTO). This reflects the region’s significant appeal, drawing about 32.2 million international travelers in the same year.

Mabrian’s findings highlight that U.S. travel interest in Costa Rica is showing the sharpest rise among the reviewed destinations, with a 33% year-over-year increase. Particularly, Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport in northwestern Costa Rica is experiencing a notable surge in searches, up 54%, as travelers seek to explore popular coastal areas like Tambor and Tamarindo in the Papagayo Gulf.

Puerto Rico and the Mexican Caribbean are also seeing an uptick in travel interest, with respective increases of 9% and an average of 6% across Cancun, Cozumel, and Tulum airports. Moreover, the Dominican Republic is witnessing a modest growth of 4%, primarily driven by increased interest in Santo Domingo’s Las Americas Airport.

“Costa Rica’s inspirational demand increase is very uniform throughout all the American airports analysed, demonstrating that this is a top-of-mind destination for American travellers during winter season, that looks very positive and promising in terms of consolidated bookings and arrivals”, says Carlos Cendra, Partner and Director of Marketing and Communications at Mabrian. 

The recent opening of Felipe Carrillo Puerto Airport in Tulum has notably boosted demand for the Mexican Caribbean, contributing to a regional growth of 6% for the November 2024 to February 2025 period, despite a slight 9% decrease in searches to Cozumel year over year. Meanwhile, Cancun also recorded a 4% increase in travel interest compared to the previous winter.

Conversely, Jamaica and the Bahamas are observing a dip in American interest for winter getaways, with declines of 17% and 20% in searches, respectively. For Jamaica, while interest in Kingston Town rose by 12%, Montego Bay saw a 23% decrease. The Bahamas experienced a rise in interest for the serene Grand Bahamas (+6%), but Nassau faced a significant drop of 22%. Interest in Barbados remains stable, with a slight increase of 1% in U.S. travel interest since last winter.

According to Mabrian’s spokesperson, “Tulum Airport will be a significant attraction pole and connectivity hub for the Mexican Caribbean, contributing significatively to attract more American and international mid-high segment travellers in the coming years”.

Mabrian’s Share of Searches Index offers a nuanced view of travel demand, focusing on flight search behavior to gauge market interest in destinations, which is crucial for understanding travel trends independent of actual bookings.