The article “What’s new in the Caribbean for 2022” written by Suri (2020) describes the revitalization of the Caribbean islands after the pandemic of COVID-19. Specifically, the author mentions that the infrastructure in the region is undergoing serious renovations and advancements to attract an even bigger number of visitors when the situation grows more stable. In 2020, the Caribbean travel industry experienced a devastating downturn, but in 2021, a substantial share of international travelers chose the region as their destination. The author specifies that Americans are not an exception; the reasons are the proximity of the islands and their relatively successful campaign against the pandemic.
To delve deeper into the situation with the tourism advancements of the Caribbean, Suri provides specific data. According to the author, many visitors, primarily people from the U.S., were driven to the Caribbean as a pandemic travel destination because of its accessibility and reasonably successful reputation in managing Covid-19 (Suri, 2021). Though incoming visitations were severely impacted in 2020, the number of foreign tourists in 2021 was significantly more significant, at least for a selection of islands (Suri, 2021). 14 of the 26 Caribbean Tourism Organization participating nations reported a substantial increase in international travelers in 2021.
Considering the above, the region seeks to turn new visitors into regular to overcome the quarantine-related economic recession as soon as possible. This requires a maximal renovation of the resorts so that they can remain sufficiently competitive. Therefore, the most popular and influential islands are investing outstandingly large sums in their development. The latter involves not solely constructing and renovating touristic objects, such as hotels or beaches, but also essential advancements in other spheres. Among those is energy, where the Caribbean islands seek to reach complete self-sufficiency, transport, the supply of potable water, and others.
To complete its goal, the region has to increase its capacity substantially, which means the ability to house more people than possible at the current stage. This requires additional dwellings, air seats, and attractions to entertain the guests. In addition, the existing visa policies need reconsidering to enable visitors to spend long-lasting vacations in the region with no worries about bureaucratic issues. Furthermore, some islands are planning to allow foreigners to work without any special documents, which may add to their willingness to stay in the region. Certain communities find creative solutions to attract as many people as possible, among which is a cruise to Bermuda with no connection to other islands.
To provide factual information and illuminate ongoing changes, Suri provides examples of developers like John Alexander. He intends to build more accommodations and will open the area’s first glamping destination, Little Bay Eco Resort, on 54 acres, with tented rooms comparable to another luxurious glamping resort, Paws Up Montana (Suri, 2021). Another example is shown through St. Lucia’s attitude, in 2021 received 20,000 extra flight seats from the U.S., and the development of new facilities was already ongoing (Suri, 2021). According to the island’s head of state, Evelyn Wever-Croes, Aruba’s number of tourists began to recover in July 2021 (Suri, 2021). The region now intends to invest around $153 million in 2022 and $264 million in 2023 to increase accommodations.