Cruise tourism directly churned out a record US$3.36 billion in the Caribbean and Latin America in the 2017-2018 cruise season, over 6% rise from 2015 – as per the latest statistics from the Florida-Caribbean Association (FCCA).
The Economic Contribution of Cruise Tourism to the Destination Economies study, which is carried on every three years by Business Research & Economic Advisors (BREA) found that the cruise industry was more lucrative than ever, in spite of two major hurricanes in September and October 2017.
FCCA and BREA discovered that the 36 cruise destinations that took part in the study organized a total of 29.6 onshore visits in the 2017-2018 season – a 5.2% rise from 2015. Cruise passengers embarked on the shore 25.2 million times, investing a total of US$2.56 billion over the season. In the meantime, crew made a total of 4.4 million shore visits and spent almost US$60 each time, producing US$265.7 million overall.
Cruise lines spent an average of US$14.8 million per destination, totaling US$534 million.
Also, the cruise industry supported around 79,000 jobs across the 36 destinations that took part in the study, a growth of 5.2% from 2015.
“We could not be prouder of these results and what they mean for all of our neighbours and partners throughout the Caribbean and Latin America,” said Michele Paige, FCCA president. “Beyond showing what cruise tourism brings to these destinations’ economies, which was crucial in restoring lives and communities following last year’s historic hurricane season, many of the findings will also serve as the foundation of building further mutual success between cruise lines and destination stakeholders.”
