- Tourist Flow Grows by 10% in Nine Months
- Americans Travel Less, Air Arrivals Drop by 2% in September
The Dominican Republic remained the preferred destination for 8,362,295 visitors who arrived both by air and sea in the first nine months of this year, marking a 10% increase compared to January-September 2023, when 7,626,033 visitors arrived.
In a press conference, the Ministry of Tourism highlighted yesterday that the country recorded 6,430,400 air arrivals between January and September, representing a 7% increase, while sea arrivals totaled 1,931,895, reflecting a 21% growth compared to the same period in 2023.
Thus, Dominican tourism continues its growth trend, with an increasing cruise tourism offering, amid an international tourism context influenced by changing preferences among European travelers, reduced frequencies from the United States, and the suspension of direct flights from Haiti and Venezuela—factors affecting the pace of air arrivals, the institution reported.
Fewer Trips from the U.S.
In this regard, the arrival of non-resident foreigners in September of this year was 468,916, a decrease of 2% (9,917 fewer tourists) compared to September 2023, when 478,833 passengers arrived, due to fewer arrivals from the United States, the main source country for tourists to the Dominican Republic.
Arrivals from the U.S. decreased by 7.5% in September, dropping from 245,845 in September 2023 to 228,084 in September 2024.
This comes after a slight decline in the arrival rate observed since July, attributed to reduced flight routes by American Airlines from Miami, decreased frequencies by JetBlue from New York and San Juan, and the reduction and cancellation of routes by Spirit Airlines following its financial crisis.
Adding to this are uncertainties surrounding U.S. politics during the election period, according to the Ministry’s data, which shows that American travel decreased in the rest of the Caribbean (-8%), Mexico (-5.7%), and Central America (-1.1%).
Only South America saw a 2.8% increase in arrivals from the entire Latin American region in September.
Despite everything, the United States continued to lead the list of countries sending tourists in September, with an influx of 39%.
The five main states of residence for these tourists were:
- Florida (7%)
- New York (7%)
- Ontario (5%)
- Quebec (4%)
- New Jersey (4%)
Following the United States as the primary country of residence for passengers in September were Canada (9%), Colombia (8%), Argentina (6%), and England (4%), with Argentina showing the highest growth at 65.3% for the month.
Growth in Airports
Looking at the growth of air tourist flow by airport in September, 262,773 passengers arrived through Punta Cana International Airport (56% of total travelers), which saw the highest growth for the month at 2.5%.
Next was Cibao International Airport, which welcomed 58,592 passengers (12% of the total in September), with a growth of 0.2%.
27% of passengers (126,745) arrived via Las Américas International Airport, which saw a 10% decrease in passenger flow compared to September 2023. This trend was also observed in airports such as La Romana (which dropped by 15% and received 2,878 tourists) and Puerto Plata (with 14,457 tourists and a 3% decrease).
Cruise Tourism Surges
The arrival of visitors in September was boosted by the high demand for cruise tourism, which totaled 111,701 visitors who disembarked at Dominican ports, representing a 66% increase compared to September 2023.
Of this number, 103,561 were cruise passengers and 38,753 were crew members, who arrived via 36 ships and 10 boats. 62% arrived through Amber Cove, 30% through Taíno Bay, 7% through La Romana, and 1% through Santo Domingo.
Thus, the total number of visitors in September was 580,617, reflecting a 6% increase compared to 2023.
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