Tourism thrives as stayover visitors near pre-pandemic highs

Efforts to boost stayover tourism are paying off, with the latest statistics from the Department of Tourism pointing to stayover numbers that are approaching the pre-pandemic high recorded in early 2019.

The DoT on Friday announced that 137,094 stayover visitors travelled to Cayman between January and March, just off the record of 145,804 for the same period in 2019, and a 13.4% uptick compared to 2023.

Of those visitors over the first quarter, 83% came from the US, 8.3% from Canada, 5% from the United Kingdom and Europe, and 1.1% from Latin America, according to a DoT press release.

The department noted that even areas with smaller absolute numbers posted significant increases. For example, while Latin America represents only about 1% of the total, the number of visitors from that area increased 21.4% compared to the beginning of 2023.

The numbers have leaders in the hospitality industry, including Marc Langevin, general manager of The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman, optimistic about prospects for tourism.

He told the Compass that tourism destinations have taken different approaches to recovering from the industry blows, with the Cayman Islands’ focus on quality over quantity paying dividends.

“When I look at quarter one, we actually have a little bit less occupancy than back in 2019, which was our record year,” Langevin said. “But as the business has evolved, we have slightly reduced the occupancy, but we have actually gained revenue because we have a different way of targeting customers.”

He noted that the Cayman Islands took a more gradual return to operations than some regional counterparts.

“Because we have been able to deliver our quality service, I think the customers saw value, and they came back in 2024,” he said. “We are in a very good phase right now, where we have rebuilt the foundation of our business and potentially created a differentiation between the value we are offering here in Grand Cayman versus what they might find in other areas in the region.”

Holiday numbers

The DoT noted several outreach efforts have contributed to this success, including sending  representatives to international travel media events, including the world’s largest tourism conference in Berlin, and Routes Americas, a large regional air service forum in Colombia.

Holiday breaks also played a role.

Easter fell in March this year rather than in April like 2023, which boosted the quarter’s numbers. In March alone, 57,040 stayover visitors arrived – a 23% increase over the previous March.

Langevin noted that many visitors book their winter travel further out than for summer plans, so it remains to be seen whether this first quarter surge will continue.

“When we arrive in the summer months, it is a more competitive market,” he said, adding he is cautiously optimistic based on the airline booking trends he has noticed so far.

The tourism department also pointed to an increase in airlift capacity this year.

The department said 243 more flights came into the Cayman Islands in the first quarter this year compared to 2023.

The International Air Transport Association reported 226,270 inbound airline seats were booked to Cayman from the US, Canada, UK and Ireland, a 21% increase over 2023.

In addition, American Airlines recently announced daily direct flights between Dallas and Grand Cayman, from 5 Dec. to 2 April 2025.

DoT Director Rosa Harris said in the release that the department was “pleased” with the airlift uptick this year, adding, “but, it is important that we continue to seek out business development opportunities for the Cayman Islands”.

Cruise tourists still lagging

Visitor numbers do still lag in one area. First-quarter cruise arrivals fell compared to last year and are still far short of pre-COVID-19 numbers.

According to DoT statistics, 406,715 cruise passengers arrived between January and March. By comparison, 471,502 people arrived over the same period in 2023, with 538,140 in 2020, and 641,045 in 2019. Arrivals in March 2020 were lower than normal because of the onset of the pandemic.

Langevin said the decrease shouldn’t come as a significant surprise considering the government’s previous statements on the industry and lack of a cruise pier.

As for the overall recovery, Tourism Minister Kenneth Bryan lauded the tourism industry’s success, saying he looked forward to seeing more tourists arriving as room stock increases with the opening of the Hotel Indigo in May.

“These first quarter visitation results show that demand for travel to the Cayman Islands is high,” he said in the release.