THE Bahamas enjoyed a 14 percent year-over-year increase in total visitor arrivals to 5.7m for the 2024 half-year, it was disclosed yesterday.

The Ministry of Tourism, Investments and Aviation revealed the statistics in a statement issued ahead of its participation in next week’s State of the Tourism Industry Conference (SOTIC) where it pledged to tout this performance amid expectations that The Bahamas will beat last year’s 9.6m visitor arrivals for the 2023 full-year.

The SOTIC summit will be held from September 2-6 at the Westin Grand Cayman Seven Mile Beach Resort & Spa. 

The Ministry, pointing out that 2023’s sea arrivals jumped by 43 percent to a record 7.9m, said: “This upward trend has continued into 2024, with a notable 14 percent increase in foreign air and sea arrivals from January to June compared to the same period in 2023, translating to more than 5.7m visitors in six months.”

The focus on arrivals numbers has come under fire from Michael Pintard, the Opposition’s leader, and others who have argued that the key to assessing tourism performance is overall visitor spending, how this is distributed and whether it is being felt by industry employees and the wider economy.

The Government, though, has pegged visitor spending at $6bn. 

However, concerns have also been voiced that the growth in arrivals figures was driven through 2023 and past years solely by cruise arrivals whose average per capita spend is 28 times’ less than that of higher-yielding stopover visitors. 

The tourismanalytics.com website shows total air arrivals to The Bahamas for the first five months of 2024 through May increased by 3.9 percent year-over-year, rising from 790,368 for the same period in 2023 to 821,334 this time around.

However, basing its analysis on data provided by the Ministry of Tourism and Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA), the site continues to show a 2.8 percent year-over-year decline in stopover visitors - those that spend more than one night in the destination - from 669,161 to 650,371 - for the first four months of 2024.

The decline was shown to have been driven solely by a fall-off in US stopovers, which represented 82.3 percent or more than four out of every five visitors. Their numbers fell by 8.9 percent year-over-year, from 587,790 in 2023 to 535,344 for the first four months of 2024, while all other source markets - Europe, Canada and the UK - expanded.

Cruise arrivals, meanwhile, expanded by 16 percent for first port of entry during the first five months of 2024, increasing from 3.385m in 2023 to 3.929m this time around.

“To drive continued growth in both new and repeat visits, we have implemented a strategy tailored to the evolving expectations of today’s travelers,” said Chester Cooper, deputy prime minister and minister of tourism, investments and aviation, in yesterday’s Ministry release.

“Apart from the recent launch of direct flights from major markets across the US to not only Nassau but across the destination, the continued expansion of our cruise ports and the beautification of downtown, among other strategic developments, all solidify The Bahamas’ place as a leading tourist destination.”

Latia Duncombe, the Ministry of Tourism’s director-general, added: “Our success is built on a foundation of innovation, collaboration and unwavering commitment to continually enhancing our diverse tourism offerings, ensuring that visitors are eager to return.

“As we continue to break records and set new standards, we are not only responding to the needs of today’s travellers but also shaping the future of tourism in The Bahamas. SOTIC provides an invaluable platform for sharing insights, forging partnerships and driving the regional strategies that will ensure our continued success in a competitive global market.”

The Bahamas saw 9.6m total visitors in 2023 which represented a 38 percent jump from 2022, and a 33 percent increase compared to 2019. While foreign air arrivals rose 17 percent to 1.7m in 2023, sea arrivals that year surged 43.5 percent to 7.9m.