WILLEMSTAD – April 19, 2024 – The Curaçao Tourist Board is excited to report a significant growth in stayover tourism for March 2024. The island saw an impressive 38% rise in arrivals compared to March of the previous year, welcoming a total of 63,556 stayover visitors. March 2024 holds the best month ever in stayover arrivals. It is the fourth consecutive month of welcoming at least 60,000 stayover arrivals in a single month. The 60K plus streak started in December 2023, and has so far reached its peak in March 2024. The last weekend of March is when the peak of arrivals was measured, showing a great demand for tourists who chose to spend their Easter Holiday in Curaçao. This achievement further cements Curaçao’s growing popularity as a top travel destination in the Caribbean.
Curaçao continues to attract a diverse visitor base, with Europe leading the way at 40% of the market share. North America follows closely, contributing 38%, reflecting the island’s appeal to U.S. and Canadian travelers. South America accounts for 17% of visitors, while the Caribbean region contributes 4%. These figures highlight Curaçao’s broad global appeal and solidify its reputation as a premier travel destination.
Top 5 Source Markets Performance
The Netherlands, holds Curaçao’s primary source market welcoming 19,295 Dutch arrivals, recording a notable 18% growth in March. Twenty-two percent of the Dutch visitors reside in South Holland, 20% in North Holland and 13% are North Brabant residents. Furthermore, the age distribution of Dutch visitors reflects a diverse range, with 38% falling between 45 and 64 years old, and 32% between 25 and 44 years old. In terms of accommodation preferences, most Dutch visitors opted for other lodgings (54%), while the remaining 46% stayed at a resort during their stay.
Record-breaking number of arrivals are registered out of the United States of America in March, for the first time, we’ve welcomed more than 18,000 US visitors in a single month. A total of 18,741 US visitors were greeted, recording a strong 58% increase compared to last year. Additionally, it’s the first time the gap between Dutch and US visitor arrivals was less than 1,000 visitors in the same month, with only 561 stayover arrivals separating the two markets. The US market is solidifying its position as a key top source market for Curaçao. Eighteen percent of the US visitors reside in New York, 7% in Florida and 6% in New Jersey and North Carolina each. The age distribution of US visitors is primary between 45 and 64 years old (36%), followed by visitors between 25 and 44 years old (33%). In terms of accommodation preferences, 68% of the US visitors favored resort hotels, while the remaining 32% opted for other lodging options available on the island. On average US visitors stayed 6.2 nights in Curaçao.
Canada grew recording 34% increase in March, with a total of 5,144 stayover arrivals recorded. This marks the third consecutive month where stayover arrivals have exceeded five thousand in a single month. On average, Canadian visitors spent 8.1 nights in March, with a preference for resort hotels as their chosen accommodation (58%).
The fourth top performing country in absolute numbers, Colombia, witnessed remarkable growth recording 54% increase in stayover arrivals, totaling 4,228 visitors. On average, Colombian visitors spent 5.4 nights in March, with 41% choosing resort hotels for their stay, while the remaining 59% opted for alternative accommodations on the island.
Brazil experienced remarkable growth, highlighting an impressive 150% increase in stayover arrivals, reaching a total of 3,329 visitors. This signifies a substantial rise from the 1,329 Brazilians welcomed the previous year. On average, Brazilian visitors spent 7.0 nights in March. In terms of accommodation choices, 56% of Brazilian visitors opted for resort hotels.
Key Highlights March 2024
Resort Stays: Overall, 54% of stayover visitors opted for the diverse range of accommodations offered by resort hotels, including large, small, all-inclusive, and bungalow resorts, 46% opted to stay at other lodgings on island.
Demographic Insights: The largest portion, comprising 36% of visitors, belonged to the 25 to 44 age group, closely followed by the 45 to 64 age group, which represented 35% of the total arrivals.
Average nights: In total stayover visitors spent 8.4 nights in March, a 5% decrease compared to last year.
Cruise arrivals: In March, Curaçao saw a total of 42 cruise ship calls, welcoming an impressive 107,436 cruise visitors. A stable performance from the cruise industry compared to last year, when the Curaçao Ports Authority reported 42 cruise ship calls and hosted 107,607 cruise passengers.
Year to date highlights of 2024
The year started on a strong note, with a total of 184,696 stayover arrivals in the first quarter, marking a 35% growth compared to the same period last year. All markets of focus have been contributing to this growth and the Curaçao Tourist Board sees promising opportunities for the remainder of the year. The approach to further enhance its tourism success involves forming strategic partnerships and encouraging collaboration between the public and private sectors. This aims to improve accessibility and position Curaçao as the premier Caribbean destination visitors should visit to “Feel it for yourself”.
