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| Richard Sealy, chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), addresses attendees of the closing press conference for Caribbean Week New York |
During last week's closing press conference for Caribbean Week New York, Richard Sealy, chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) and tourism minister for Barbados, reported that the Caribbean “bolted out of the gates” in 2015 with a six percent rise in tourist arrivals in the first quarter when compared to the same period last year.
There were nearly eight million visits to the region, which recorded the 17th straight quarter of growth, according to the chairman.
The Caribbean continues its rapid growth rate from 2014 when arrivals grew by 5.3 percent to 26.3 million visitors. Arrivals to the Caribbean were estimated to be 7.9 million in the first three months. This is the fifth consecutive year in which arrivals grew during the first quarter and the 17th quarter of continuous growth.
The United States market continues to be the Caribbean's most productive, said Sealy. Arrivals from the U.S. increased by 5.6 percent. The Canadian market grew an equally impressive 5.4 percent with Cuba and the Dominican Republic among the destinations recording higher levels of arrivals.
In the accommodations sector, all leading hotel performance indicators were positive. There was a modest increase of 1.3 percent in the number of rooms available in the first quarter, the largest increase for this quarter in the last seven years, said Sealy.
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