The beaches on the west coast. The seemingly innumerable dive sites all over the island. The vibrant colors of Willemstad. The endless party at Mambo. The buzzing food scene. And did we mention green rum?
For years, it was the Dutch market that drove tourism in Curacao. That changed in the summer of 2022, when the Sandals Royal Curacao opened, effectively opening up the market anew for American visitors.
Since then, the Dutch Caribbean island has seen record-breaking tourism numbers — and the trend isn’t showing any signs of slowing down.
Curacao just topped 500,000 visitors — the earliest the island has ever exceeded that total — driven by both Dutch visitors and, more importantly, continued American visitation.
In September, Curacao reported 17,185 visitors from the Netherlands, a 12 percent jump over the same month in 2023. It also saw 11,908 visitors from the United States market, a 13 percent increase over September 2023.
Notably, the island also saw a strong showing from the fast-growing Brazilian market, which included 3,079 arrivals and an increase by 24 percent in the period.
The goal is to top the previously-stated target of 670,000 stayover visitors this year, officials told Caribbean Journal.
So where does the island stand? Right now, the year-to-date total includes 513,875 stayover visitors.
