St. Maarten Experiences 7.9 Percent Increase in Air Arrivals for First Quarter 2010

The St. Maarten Tourist Bureau is reporting that overall air arrivals to the destination are up 7.9 percent for the first quarter of 2010 versus the same timeframe in 2009. Visitors from the United States rose 6.4 percent for the first quarter of 2010 versus 2009. The first quarter of 2010 also saw a boost in hotel occupancy by 5.7 percent.

The average timeshare occupancy during the first three months was 83.3 percent. Cruise passenger arrivals for the first quarter totaled 542,012, a slight increase from 2009’s 541,023. Between January and March 2010, St . Maarten’s total air arrivals reached 160,908, up from 149,065 in 2009. U.S. visitors accounted for 47.5 percent of the total air arrivals at 76,430.

“We are encouraged by the increase in arrivals to St. Maarten for the first quarter of 2010,” said Regina LaBega, director of tourism for the St. Maarten Tourist Bureau. “After a difficult year in 2009, it is good to see that tourism to St. Maarten is rebounding and we anticipate that we will continue to see increased growth throughout the rest of the year as the global economy slowly recovers,” LaBega added.

“We attribute our first quarter growth from the U.S. market to the launch of our new branding campaign in November 2009 which was timed to coincide with the peak winter travel season and keeps St. Maarten top-of-mind through visually appealing ads, public relations and marketing efforts that capture the feelings of the experience that visitors elicit during their stay on the island,” noted Labega.