The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism & Aviation has announced the highest number of international arrivals ever, resulting in record hotel occupancy levels.
The Bahamas began 2019 strong with the launch of a new, brand campaign highlighting the beauty and authenticity of its 16 islands in partnership with Lenny Kravitz, urging travelers to Fly Away to The Bahamas. The Ministry also announced exciting plans for the development of a state of the art cruise port in Nassau.
“It is my great pride and pleasure to report that The Bahamas is experiencing its strongest tourism numbers ever on record,” said Minister D’Aguilar. “We look forward to building upon the success of our progressive plans and continuing the momentum in 2019 as we forge ahead with exciting new initiatives.”
The Ministry’s data partner, ForwardKeys that tracks and reports inbound, visitor data 365 days in advance, from key designated marketing areas reported that international arrivals to The Bahamas grew by 15% in January 2019 versus January 2018. Several key markets registered double-digit growth. In February, international arrivals increased by 11.1% year-over-year. The forward booking situation for the next three months (March to May) is optimistic, with forward bookings running 9.0% ahead for international arrivals. April (ahead by 15.6%) shows the most favorable outlook.
Air capacity grew by 20.0% in January year-over-year, with a solid seat growth from the best-connected international markets – the USA (+23.9%) and Canada (+12.7%). The USA and Canada will continue to lead the capacity growth in the next three months. The growth trend continues, as international air capacity grew by nearly 21% year-over-year in February.
Cruise Arrivals Increase Too
Last year was a record-breaking year for cruise ship and stopover arrivals. By the end of 2018, foreign air and sea arrivals had totaled more than 6.6 million visitors, a drastic increase from the 6.1 million recorded in 2017. Stopover visitors alone had increased 16.7 percent in 2018, as compared to 2017, and Freeport saw a surge of sea visitors by 49 percent.
Hotel and Airlift Sales Increase
The Nassau and Paradise Island hotel industry reported a spike in average daily room rates and revenue per available room in 2018 compared to 2017. The year ended with room revenues up 34 percent, gains not seen in the past ten years.
Expedia is the largest producer of online bookings to The Bahamas. Statistics from a 12-month, booking report shows The Bahamas had a 28.8% increase in room night sales year-over-year, from January 2018 to January 2019 as well as an increase of 14.2% in ticket sales and an 18.4% increase in air tickets sold, plus person count from standalone hotel bookings.
