Two years after it was devastated by Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico reports that its tourism business has made a strong comeback.

Speaking at a press conference during IMEX America 2019, Brad Dean, CEO of Discover Puerto Rico, said that seeing the continued success of Puerto Rico is incredibly rewarding because tourism impacts the local community in many ways and helps the economy prosper. “We have received great growth data from our public and private sector partners, together with the addition of new and exciting offerings that are sure to impress both leisure and business travellers.”

According to Dean, there are many indicators of the island’s rising tourism sector. These include:

ACCOMMODATIONS

• January-July 2019 occupancy spending of $603.6 million USD, a record high*, with the first six months of 2020 booking 36 per cent higher than 2019**
• Q3 and Q4 2019 hotel openings such as the Dreams Resort and Spa in Guánica, Hyatt Hacienda del Mar in Vega Alta and the ALOFT Hotel in Ponce.
• Beyond 2019, the unveiling of The Ritz-Carlton San Juan and El Conquistador Resort in Fajardo.

Sources: *STR and AirDNA Monthly Trend Report, January-July, 2010 **TravelClick Demand360, August 21, 2019

MEETINGS AND ENTERTAINMENT OFFERINGS

• The Puerto Rico Convention Center, which is regarded as the most technologically-advanced centre in the Caribbean, had the most successful year in its 14-year history.
• The 2020 debut of District San Juan, a five-acre hospitality and entertainment district that will house an ALOFT Hotel. The District will include a showroom for 6,000 guests, eight premium movie theaters, an array of restaurants, bars, lounges, and a day/night disco.
• Nature- and culture-focused offerings including three bioluminescent bays, the only rainforest in the U.S. forest system, and a culture based on a blend of Taino, African and Spanish heritages.
• San Juan’s 500th anniversary in 2020
• Being named host destination for the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) 2020 Global Summit.

AIRLIFT

• 2.6 million arrivals, an all-time high, through June 2019 at the Island’s three main airports in San Juan, Agaudilla and Ponce.
• August arrivals to San Juan International Airport (SJU) saw 7.6 per cent growth compared to August 2018, with a total of 815,043 passengers.
• The Aguadilla airport established individual and collective passenger records for January-April 2019, reaching 251,898 passengers, an increase of 98,271 compared to the same period in 2018. A sign of growth as carriers expand capacity.
• New routes to Puerto Rico, including Allegiant’s recently launched non-stop routes to SJU from Cincinnati, Raleigh-Durham and Pittsburgh.
• New routes beginning in November-December 2019: Frontier Airlines – three weekly flights from Miami International Airport to SJU; Delta’s addition of a fourth daily flight between John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York and SJU; and American Airlines addition of a second daily flight from Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) to SJU.

About Discover Puerto Rico

Discover Puerto Rico is a newly-established private, not-for-profit destination marketing organization (DMO) that is responsible for all global marketing sales and promotion of the destination. It works collaboratively with key local governmental and non-governmental players throughout Puerto Rico’s visitor economy and the community at large, with the goal of empowering economic growth and making the island a premier travel destination. For more information visit DiscoverPuertoRico.com.