National

Tourism Minister: “This Has Been The Best Year Yet”

NASSAU, BAHAMAS – It’s another year of success for tourism, as the country saw a record-breaking 11.2 Million visitors coming to our shores.

Published

12 months ago

February 5, 2025

Joshua Williams

NASSAU , BAHAMAS – It’s another year of success for tourism, as the country saw a record-breaking 11.2 million visitors coming to our shores.

The number surpasses the previous year of over nine million visitors, a 16.2% increase and a 54.7% increase when compared to numbers in 2019.

Of this total, foreign air arrivals exceeded, 1.72 million, equalling that in 2023, with an 8.7% increase in Grand Bahama and 11.9% increase in Abaco.

Deputy Prime Minister And Minister of Tourism, Investments, And Aviation, Chester Cooper, says the results are a testament to our nation being a premier destination, despite the challenges.

December was also the best month for arrivals accounting for 1.15 million visitors.

“The above results are posted, notwithstanding the interruptions of Hurricane Milton, Oscar and, the USA elections. Further, we point out the limited capacity in room inventory further dampened the trajectory of growth in air arrivals,” says Cooper.

When it comes to cruise passengers, The Bahamas ranked number one in the region and Latin America in terms of total economic benefit, according to the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association.

“We estimate it now to be in the $130 passenger region on average, and I think the number for stop-over 2800, per passenger for guests,” says Cooper

As for the Family Islands, there’s been moderate growth, “They are constrained in some cases, lack of room capacity and also by some cases lack of connectivity,” says Cooper

When it comes to The Ministry’s 2025 Strategic Plan, 12 million dollars is being spent on that initiative.