Jamaica Unites With Bonaire and More Destinations in the Caribbean Witnessing a Fall in Tourist Arrivals Through August 2026

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Jamaica unites with Bonaire and more destinations in the Caribbean witnessing a fall in tourist arrivals through August 2026, as several markets and major tourism gateways remain below their comparable 2025 visitor and passenger levels.

Jamaica, Bonaire and several other Caribbean destinations and tourism gateways have recorded fewer visitors or passengers in 2026 compared with the same periods in 2025. The declines vary sharply across the region, ranging from just 1% in Bonaire to 23.5% in Jamaica, 26.2% at Montego Bay Airport and 62.8% in Cuba. The figures show that while some destinations remain close to last year’s levels, others are experiencing much deeper declines in tourism and passenger volumes.

Caribbean Tourism Arrivals and Airport Traffic in 2026

Jamaica Records 23.5% Decline in Tourist Arrivals

Jamaica recorded 1,131,422 arrivals between January and June 2026, compared with 1,478,168 during the same period in 2025, representing a 23.5% decline. That means the country received 346,746 fewer arrivals during the first six months of the year. The fall places Jamaica among the destinations with the largest declines in the supplied figures and signals a considerably weaker first half of 2026 for its visitor economy. However, Jamaica’s national figures cover only January to June, so they should not be treated as representing the country’s performance through August. Later figures will be needed to determine whether the decline continued, narrowed or began to reverse during the third quarter.

Bonaire Records Modest 1% Fall Through August

Bonaire’s decline was far smaller. The island recorded 133,436 arrivals between January and August 2026, compared with 134,814 during the same eight months of 2025. This represents a decline of 1%, equivalent to 1,378 fewer arrivals. Although Bonaire remained slightly behind its 2025 performance, the relatively small difference indicates that visitor volumes were much closer to last year’s levels than in several other markets in the dataset. The figures show a destination experiencing a modest contraction rather than the double-digit declines recorded elsewhere in the region.

Montego Bay Airport Passenger Traffic Drops 26.2%

Montego Bay Airport recorded one of the sharpest declines in the available figures. Passenger traffic reached 2,628,800 between January and August 2026, compared with 3,561,600 during the corresponding period in 2025. That represents a 26.2% decline, or 932,800 fewer passengers. The scale of the fall is particularly significant because Montego Bay is a major gateway serving Jamaica’s tourism areas. However, airport passenger traffic should not be treated as identical to national tourist arrivals, as the two datasets measure different types of movements. Even so, both Jamaica’s national arrival figures and Montego Bay Airport’s passenger numbers show substantial declines compared with their respective 2025 periods.

Cuba Records the Steepest Decline

Cuba experienced the largest percentage decline in the supplied data, with arrivals falling from 1,128,831 between January and July 2025 to 419,863 during the same period in 2026. The 62.8% decline represents 708,968 fewer arrivals and leaves the country’s visitor total at well under half its previous-year level for the period. The figures establish the scale of the decline, but they do not by themselves explain its causes, meaning any assessment of the factors behind the fall would require additional supporting information.

San Juan Airport Falls 3.4% Through August

San Juan Airport handled 9,422,571 passengers between January and August 2026, compared with 9,757,486 during the corresponding period in 2025. Passenger traffic was therefore down 3.4%, representing 334,915 fewer passengers. Despite the decline, San Juan recorded the largest overall passenger volume among the airports included in the supplied data. As with Montego Bay, these figures measure airport passenger traffic rather than national tourist arrivals.

Cancun Airport Passenger Numbers Decline 5.7%

Cancun Airport recorded 5,545,370 passengers between January and July 2026, down from 5,878,274 during the same period of 2025. The difference of 332,904 passengers represents a 5.7% decline. While Cancun is in Mexico rather than the Caribbean islands, its airport serves one of the wider Caribbean basin’s largest leisure tourism markets, making its passenger performance relevant to broader regional travel trends.

Trinidad and Tobago St Kitts and Montserrat Record Smaller Falls

The declines were less pronounced elsewhere. Trinidad and Tobago recorded 184,370 arrivals from January to June, down 2.7% from 189,428 a year earlier. St Kitts received 75,030 arrivals over the same period, a 3.2% decline from 77,531. Montserrat recorded 4,459 arrivals compared with 4,509 a year earlier, representing a relatively small 1.1% decrease. These figures show that while all three markets remained below their 2025 levels, their declines were substantially smaller than those recorded in Jamaica and Cuba.

Caribbean Tourism Performance Remains Uneven in 2026

The available figures show that the Caribbean tourism picture remains highly uneven in 2026. Bonaire and Montserrat are only slightly below their previous-year levels, while Jamaica, Montego Bay Airport and particularly Cuba have recorded much larger contractions. Direct comparisons require caution because the figures cover different periods and combine national tourist arrivals with airport passenger traffic. Further data later in 2026 will provide a clearer indication of whether the affected destinations can narrow these gaps before the end of the year.

Jamaica unites with Bonaire and more destinations in the Caribbean witnessing a fall in tourist arrivals through August 2026, as visitor and passenger volumes remain below comparable 2025 levels.

In conclusion, Jamaica unites with Bonaire and more destinations in the Caribbean witnessing a fall in tourist arrivals through August 2026, as weaker visitor and passenger volumes leave several tourism markets below their comparable 2025 levels despite significant differences in the scale of the declines.