Belize Fastest Growing Caribbean Destination 2024
Belize is the Fastest-Growing Caribbean Destination
Belize is experiencing a significant travel boom. According to the travel numbers for 2024, Belize is the Fastest-Growing Caribbean Destination.
The Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA), with lead travel analyst ForwardKeys, released a comprehensive report on Caribbean Tourism.
Surrounded by the tropical Caribbean Sea in Central America, Belize is undergoing “impressive” tourism growth, according to a study carried out by analytics firm ForwardKeys.
So far in 2024, Belize has seen a 30% increase in international tourists. These figures represent the fastest growth rate of any destination in the Caribbean.
Belize tourism is up 30% in 2024 (Jan to June). The 30% growth rate is impressive compared to similar high-growth destinations; Curacao is up 24%, while Aruba has seen arrivals climb by 20%, according to ForwardKeys.
In 2024 (January to June), Belize saw record-breaking tourist arrivals, earning Belize the position as one of the “Fastest-Growing Destinations in the Region.”
Belize has seen faster tourism growth than any other destination in the Caribbean. Belize outperformed similarly booming destinations like Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Curaçao, Aruba, The Bahamas, and the Cayman Islands.
Belize saw a 30% increase in arrivals for the first half 2024. This growth rate is impressive compared to similar high-growth destinations; Curacao is up 24%, and Aruba is up 20%.
ForwardKeys called Belize’s growth “impressive.” The country has seen tourism growth steadily increase since post-pandemic travel relaunched.
Belize tourism and overnight arrivals, has had a record-breaking year. Belize saw a 30% increase in 2024 (January through June) compared to 2023. Belize also had an increase of 17.5% in tourism arrivals from the benchmark tourism of 2019 (compared to the same timeframe before the pandemic).
Belize Stands Out in 2024
In 2024 (January to June), Belize saw record-breaking tourist arrivals, earning Belize the position as one of the “Fastest-Growing Destinations in the Region.”
According to ForwardKeys, Belize has so far seen a 30% increase in arrivals for the first half of 2024 (compared to the same period in 2023). Belize was listed as the Fastest Growing Destination.
In 2024 (January to June), Belize saw record-breaking tourist arrivals, earning Belize the position as one of the “Fastest-Growing Destinations in the Region.” Belize saw a 30% increase in arrivals for the first half of 2024. The 30% growth rate in Belize is impressive compared to similar high-growth destinations; Curacao is up 24%, and Aruba is up 20%. Belize is the Fastest-Growing Destination in 2024.
Belize Tourism 2024
Belize is listed as the fastest-growing mid-tier destination.
Mid-tier Caribbean destinations show impressive growth in the first half of 2024. Belize leads this ranking with international arrivals up +30% year-on-year. This is again driven by the U.S. market, in this case primarily due to bookings from New York, which are +91% higher than 2023 following the launch of new direct flights in December.
Key Factors for Growth
The ForwardKeys report also included stats on all the Caribbean markets and the factors driving regional and destination growth.
- Increased Family Travel. Belize was the second-ranked destination in the region for family travel, with a +35% increase, following only Curaçao, which saw a 38% increase.
- An Increase in Latin American visitors (Colombia, Brazil, and Argentina in particular).
- An increase in travelers visiting the Caribbean to attend carnivals and festivals.
Top Family-Travel Destinations
Belize ranks 2nd among all destinations in the Caribbean region, with a 35% increase in family travel.
Increased Family Travel. Belize was the second-ranked destination in the region for family travel, with a +35% increase, following only Curaçao, which saw a 38% increase.
Caribbean Destination Tourism & Seat Capacity
ForwardKeys Seat Capacity includes information on scheduled direct flights and their seat capacity for different destinations.
Airline capacity reflects the planned total seat capacity airlines expect to offer. Change in seat capacity is a reflection of the supply and demand for a destination.
Caribbean vs. Global Travel
Caribbean is the top growth tourism region since 2019. Belize is one of the fastest growing destination in the Caribbean region!
The Caribbean is recognized as the most tourism-dependent region in the world, with tourism serving as the largest economic contributor for many nations within the area.
Caribbean Travel 2024 vs 2023
The Caribbean is up 13% in 2024 compared to the year prior (2023 from Jan to June). Caribbean travel is 10% higher in 2024 than pre-COVID levels of 2019.
Belize tourism is up 30% in 2024 compared to the year prior (2023 from Jan to June). Belize travel is 19% higher in 2024 than pre-COVID levels of 2019.
Caribbean Travel 2024 vs 2019
Caribbean tourism has risen by 10% since 2019. Belize’s tourism is up 17.5% from 2019, which is a strong indicator of the region’s tourism rebound.
Caribbean Travel & Connectivity
Analysis of detailed air capacity data reveals that connectivity to the Caribbean is showing impressive growth, increasing +13% overall in the first half of 2024 compared to the previous year. Canada is contributing significantly to this success — with an increase in seat capacity of +17%, making it the largest origin market currently performing above the global average. Meanwhile, the largest origin market overall, the US, tracks global average growth at 13%.
Intra-Caribbean connectivity expanded by 20% year-on-year. This is a key enabler of multi-destination trips within the region.
The strong growth exhibited in tourism for the first half of 2024 — particularly in intra-regional connectivity — is crucial as the Caribbean seeks to attract more multi-destination travelers motivated to explore the diversity of the region’s tourism offer. It also enables regional destinations to target growth in high-value segments such as luxury travelers and family groups, who are more likely to travel to the Caribbean when increased international air capacity offers more flexibility in carrier choice and scheduling.
North American Travel to the Caribbean
For the Caribbean, only the US market has fully recovered or exceeded 2019 levels, while the recovery rates of European arrivals reached 88.2%, and Canada reached 88.1%, of 2019 tourism respectively. Caribbean travel from the US has risen by 12.6% from 2019.
Toronto emerges as the top-performing North American origin city for travel to the Caribbean in the first half of 2024, with arrivals up 23% year-on-year. This growth is supported by a 15% increase in seat capacity between Toronto and the Caribbean, with various airlines increasing the number of available flights.
In the United States, New York (+13%) also shows sustained growth.
Direct connectivity between North America and the Caribbean has improved significantly since 2019. In the first six months of 2024, 68% of all arrivals from the U.S. and Canada are flying directly to their Caribbean destination. 32% of arrivals will still connect via at least one connecting flight.
Increased connectivity from North American hubs expands the Caribbean and Belize’s reach into other U.S. and Canadian markets, attracting new travelers who can now reach the region’s destinations with just one stop.
Latin America Travel to the Caribbean
The BTB (Belize Tourism Board) shared strategies being implemented to introduce Belize to Latin American travelers—a strategic move considering that Latin American travel within the region continues to grow. According to Forward Keys, Colombia and Brazil are the top-performing Latin American markets for Caribbean travel.
With Latin America seeing an emerging middle class, which has increasing disposable income that has led to a surge in outbound tourism.
Latin American region boasts a population of over 650 million people and a combined GDP of over $5 trillion.
Latin America is a key emerging source of tourism in the Caribbean.
The Latin American travel and tourism market is projected to expand significantly between 2024 and 2028, with its size anticipated to increase from USD $49.50 billion in 2023 to USD $64.42 billion by 2028 (Mordor Intelligence).
“Through our air ticketing data, we are observing a significant leap from the Latin Markets into the Caribbean, especially from Central America, Colombia, and Argentina. Even more encouraging is that they are flying in premium-class cabins more than before the pandemic. A worthy market to tap into,” says Olivier Ponti, VP of Insights at ForwardKeys.
“Moreover, LATAM countries have been boosting capacity to the Caribbean. Colombia (+157%), Brazil (+187%), Mexico (+55%), and Peru (+13%) all are showing strong growths and audiences interested in a Caribbean holiday,” says Juan A. Gomez, Head of Market Intelligence at ForwardKeys.
Belize and Caribbean Tourism Investment
The Caribbean region has shown tremendous growth and tourism recovery throughout the years. Destinations like Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and Belize are seeing an impressive increase in tourism arrivals.
Belize is experiencing a significant travel boom. International arrivals to Belize have surged by 30% in the first half of 2024 (January to June), with air arrivals showing the same impressive growth rate compared to 2023. This makes Belize the fastest-growing destination in the Caribbean.
Unlike many international beach destinations, Belize is an English-speaking country to makes the vacation experience for travelers even smoother. This also makes investing in Belize much easier as well, as Belize has full foreign ownership.
If you are looking to invest in Belize or purchase Belize real estate, contact RE/MAX Belize!
