Long stay and cruise passenger arrivals continue to increase

Minister of Tourism Josephine Connolly said that from January to August 2023, Turks and Caicos Islands welcomed 469,002 air arrivals, an increase of 3.71 percent over 2022 figures of 452,218. The United States market is leading with 382,564 arrivals. There were 32,257 arrivals from Canada, 6,661 from the United Kingdom and 38,607 from the Caribbean and other territories. In terms of cruise arrivals, the country welcomed 491,806 visitors from January to June 2023. This marks a 51.7% increase over the corresponding period in 2022.

As Turks and Caicos Islands joins the region in celebrating Caribbean Tourism Month, with Experience Turks and Caicos celebrating under the theme “Investing in Today for Tomorrow”, Connolly said that protecting and investing in our tourism product is crucial for the destination.

“As a small island nation where tourism plays a central part in our economic development, I encourage all stakeholders to embrace this month for tourism awareness and showcase our islands in their best fashion. Tourism contributes 85% of our GDP. It is imperative that we protect and invest in our natural assets to ensure tourism continues to thrive for today and our future,” she said.

The minister also announced Virgin Atlantic’s inaugural flight, non-stop service from London- Heathrow on November 8th, 2023.

“This will boost our air arrival numbers to the Turks and Caicos Islands. It is important to note that non-stop flight from the UK, will result in increased visitation from that UK Source Market. We now have two major airlines flying to our destination from the UK. Data shows UK travelers spend an average of 10 days in the destination which aligns with our strategic goal to increase the length of stay and spend in the Turks and Caicos Islands,” she added. “The Strategy to increase spend and length of stay in the Turks and Caicos Islands is not just for the UK source market but all our current source markets. We are currently in talks with an airline to provide airlift to Grand Turk. Once finalized I will be happy to share the details.”

For Tourism Environmental Awareness Month, the month of activities speaks to the theme as we seek to create pathways for the continued growth and success of our tourism industry. There will be a Tourism Career Fair which will be held in Grand Turk, South Caicos and Providenciales, in which we are opening the eyes of our youth to the endless potential for opportunities beyond the traditional jobs in the tourism industry and have them also exposed to entrepreneurship opportunities in the tourism industry.

At the “Dis We Own Market” at the Grace Bay Market, our artisans, artists, and chefs from all our islands, will display their unique skills and creativity. Our Beach Clean Ups at South Caicos,

North and Middle Caicos, Grand Turk and Providenciales will reiterate our commitment to keeping the Turks and Caicos Islands Beautiful by Nature.

The Trash Bin competition, under the slogan “Find a Bin, Put in a Bin”, will see school children competing to showcase the best Trash Bin design and the winning design will be featured on trash bins at our popular Fish Fry.

The Turks and Caicos Hotel and Tourism Association will also be active during the month with Hello Tourist, a two-day initiative in which our youth will experience what it is like to be a tourist and TCI Shines, an activity for their members to clean up the vicinity around their establishments.