Aruba’s Record Overnight Arrivals Paced Dutch Caribbean Destinations In 2014
Aruba led a strong year for visitor arrivals among the Caribbean’s Dutch islands in 2014. Aruba reached one million stay-over visitors for the first time in 2014 with a total of 1.07 million arrivals, a 9.5 percent increase over 2013, according to Aruba Tourism Authority (ATA) statistics. Aruba’s 2014 total eclipsed the previous record of 979,256 overnight visitors set in 2013. Aruba also reached 903,934 visitors in 2012.
Although their year-end visitor arrival numbers were second and third behind Aruba in 2014, Curacao and St. Maarten also reported higher overnight arrivals for the year, with increases of 2.5 percent (450,953 visitors) and 7.3 percent (377,371) respectively. Collectively, the three Dutch Caribbean islands hosted just short of two million visitors in 2014 according to Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) data.
Aruba’s 9.5 percent overnight arrivals increase in 2014 was the seventh-highest of the 28 destinations tracked by CTO, trailing only the Turks & Caicos, Grenada, Montserrat, Haiti, the Cayman Islands and the Dominican Republic.
Visits to Aruba by North American travelers increased 3.7 percent in 2014, according to the ATA data. That total represented a fraction of the 26.8 percent increase in visits from South American travelers, who largely fueled Aruba’s record 2014 arrivals growth. European visitors to Aruba increased by 4.1 percent in 2014.
Nevertheless an ATA official last year described North Americans travelers as targets of “a strong marketing focus.” Furthermore, North Americans can fly to Aruba from 14 separate gateways and the destination continues to enjoy “high name recognition” among North American vacationers, said the ATA official.
Year-end results from Aruba’s hotel sector mirrored the growth in 2014 overnight arrivals. Aruba hotels posted average room occupancy of 79.3 percent in 2014, an increase of 1.7 percent over 2013. Average daily rate (ADR) increased 18 percent in 2014 versus 2013, while revenue per available room (RevPar) grew by 20.6 percent during the same period, according to ATA officials.
Aruba’s hotel sector welcomed several new and renovated properties in 2013 and 2014, including the $150 million Ritz-Carlton, Aruba, which opened in December of 2013, and the all-inclusive Holiday Inn Resort Aruba, which completed a $20 million renovation in January 2014. An all-inclusive RIU Palace Aruba opened in October of 2014 in the site of a former Westin hotel following a $175 million renovation and re-branding.
“We could not be prouder of what our island has accomplished,” said Ronella Tjin Asjoe-Croes, ATA’s CEO. “Tourism is the heart of our economy, and the dedication and perseverance of our happy locals combined with our always-improving product ensures Aruba remains a thriving tourist destination.”
Aruba’s government has launched numerous tourism and public infrastructure improvement projects this decade including the development of an extensive waterfront esplanade and an electric trolley service operating in the downtown capital of Oranjestad. The trolley’s mile and a half route starts near Oranjestad’s cruise ship pier and travels along Main Street behind Royal Plaza Mall and Renaissance Mall.
“The ATA along with our on-island and in-market partners all make a concerted effort to showcase Aruba’s differentiating features, beyond our award-winning beaches and constant sunshine,” said Otmar Oduber, Aruba’s minister of tourism.
Source: Travel Pulse
