The Caribbean region suffered a 65.5% drop in arrivals in 2020, according to data from member countries of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO).
CTO data revealed that tourist arrivals in 2020 fell to just over 11 million, a far cry from the record 32 million tourist visits in 2019.
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As dire as the percentage drop is, the region actually fared better than the world average of a 73.9% decline during the same period.
The impact was particularly evident in the Caribbean between April and mid-June 2020 when most destinations were forced to close borders due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The year had gotten off to a relatively strong start, with arrivals in January (2.7 million) and February (2.92 million) trailing 2019 numbers just slightly. Numbers began to pick up again in June, when several countries reopened with stiff entry regulations, though the activity through the end of the year didn't come close to what the region experienced prior to the mid-March shutdown.
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The rollout of vaccinations in the U.S. this winter could bring a higher level of tourist arrivals in the coming months, although most tourism officials do not see a real return to robust numbers until 2022.