The Caribbean Poised to Bask Once Again in the Limelight of FITUR 2009

The Caribbean will once again attend the next edition of FITUR, the International Tourism Trade Fair, whose twenty-ninth edition will take place strong presence, thus reflecting the country’s interest in taking part in this established event and ideal forum for promoting the tourism business.

According to the indicators established by the World Tourism Organisation (WTO), the tourist industry recorded some highly favourable results over the first four months of the year, in spite of the uncertainty regarding the state of the world economy, which once again demonstrates the tourist industry’s considerable stability and strength.

In this respect, the number of foreign tourist arrivals between January and April 2008 increased by 5 percent in relation to the same period in the year 2007, based on a figure of some 266 million trips. All of the world’s regions have enjoyed some good results, and the Caribbean is no exception. Thus, following the slight slump that was recorded last year, the region is now witnessing some significant increases.

The most important destinations throughout the region enjoyed strong growth over the first few months of the year 2008. In this respect, Cuba, which enjoyed growth of 15 percent, witnessed a significant increase in the number of Spanish tourist arrivals. For its part, Jamaica, which enjoyed 10 percent growth, and the Dominican Republic, which witnessed 6 percent growth, also performed well.

Furthermore, the preliminary results from the smallest islands were also highly favourable, including Curacao, which recorded growth of 44 percent over the first two months of the year, St. Lucia, which enjoyed 10 percent growth, and Antigua and Barbuda, which witnessed a 9 percent increase in tourist arrivals.

The Caribbean’s growing participation at FITUR has gone hand in hand with the rise in the number of international tourists it welcomes each year, especially Spanish tourists. According to figures furnished by the WTO, the region welcomed more than 19 million foreign tourists in the year 2007, which also led to an increase in foreign tourism revenue. In this respect, the revenue figure increased by 4 percent last year, coming to more than 22,500 million dollars.

At the next edition of FITUR, the Caribbean’s attendance will contribute to the growing international dimension at the fair, with the International Area accounting for some 44 percent of the event as a whole at the last edition.

Furthermore, this region will have the opportunity to gauge the current climate within the tourist industry, thanks to the participation of more than 13,500 companies from 170 countries/regions and the attendance of some 255,000 visitors, among whom we might mention 157,000 professionals from the tourist industry itself.

The twenty-ninth edition of FITUR, a fair organized by IFEMA, will take place between January 28 and February 1, 2009, at Feria de Madrid. In the Spanish capital.