Curaçao’s tourism on the rise: A record-breaking July 2023

July 2023 emerges as a groundbreaking month for Curaçao’s tourism. The island reported 50,936 stayover arrivals, marking a remarkable 6 per cent jump from the previous year.

Not only did this make July the most prosperous month of the year so far, but it also signals a potential half a million visitor milestone by the year’s end.

For the first time, the first seven months have seen stayover arrivals exceed 300,000, culminating in 323,808 visitors, which is a 17% spike from last year's 275,799 during the same timeframe.

A deep dive into regional performance

While the Dutch market, traditionally a reliable source of visitors, saw an 18 per cent decrease to 19,378 from the previous year’s 23,489, other regions compensated for this fall.

European tourist arrivals slipped by 17 per cent. In contrast, North American tourist numbers surged by 33 per cent, with 12,457 being US residents from the total 14,106 North American visitors.

South America and the Caribbean regions were not left behind. South American tourist numbers soared by 51 per cent, totaling 9,203 visitors for July, while the Caribbean region reported a 23 per cent growth, with 4,020 guests from nearby islands.

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Spotlight on key source markets

The Netherlands, despite the recent decline, maintains its position as the dominant source of tourists, even surpassing its July 2019 figure of 16,456 visitors.

Furthermore, countries like the USA, Canada, Brazil, and Colombia all reported robust growth figures for July. Collectively, these top five countries accounted for 77 per cent of all arrivals in July 2023.

A strategic shift in air connectivity

A strategic enhancement in seat capacity, in collaboration with airline partners, has played a pivotal role in the upswing of visitor numbers.

For instance, JetBlue now facilitates five weekly flights from New York, up from three last year.

Similarly, Air Canada amplified its service from Toronto, offering three weekly flights throughout the summer, a rise from last year’s single weekly flight.

Moreover, the much-awaited inaugural flight of Azul Airlines from Belo Horizonte, Brazil, augments the connectivity and opportunities.

This strategic move resulted in a historic achievement for Brazil, as visitor numbers surpassed the 2,000 mark for the first time, totaling 2,956 Brazilian tourists in July.

Accommodation for visitors

Reports show that visitors spent 9.5 nights on average in Curaçao.

Sixty-one percent of all the visitors stayed in resort hotels. Many of the visitors who traveled in July are between 25 and 44 years old (32 per cent) and 45 and 64 years old (30 per cent).