Adompretur president calls Dominican diaspora tourism engine, cites nearly 8 million visits in five years

New York.- The president of the Dominican Association of Tourism Press (Adompretur), Sarah Hernández, told a packed audience in New York that the Dominican diaspora has become the “undisputed locomotive” of the country’s tourism rebound, contributing nearly eight million visits between 2020 and 2025. Hernández revealed the figure during the swearing-in ceremony of Adompretur’s new New York chapter, framing the diaspora as a decisive force behind the island’s tourism recovery and growth.

Hernández also pointed to the financial muscle behind those trips: remittances from Dominicans abroad surpassed US$50 billion from 2020 to 2025, according to Central Bank data she cited. “When you add those transfers to the flights and hotel bookings, we are talking about a diaspora that has been vital to the Dominican Republic’s development,” she said, stressing the combined economic and social impact of migrants’ ties to the homeland.

Diaspora’s dual impact: travel and remittances

The numbers underline the claim: Hernández noted that one in every four tourists who visits the Dominican Republic is a member of the diaspora. In 2021 alone, about 1.3 million expatriate Dominicans returned, and official projections for 2025 point toward more than 1.9 million nonresident Dominicans visiting the country this year, a trend that has helped position the Dominican Republic as the Caribbean’s top destination.

Yenny Polanco Lovera, Millizen Uribe, and Sarah Hernández share a moment with attendees at the Adompretur New York swearing-in ceremony. (Photo: Adompretur)

Beyond statistics, Hernández used the occasion to lay out her priorities for Adompretur: internal unity, institutional strengthening and a renewed focus on sustainable tourism that respects the nation’s natural and cultural wealth. She swore in the New York board led by César Romero and described the chapter as part of a strategic push to amplify Dominican voices abroad and professionalize tourism reporting.

Adompretur strengthens presence abroad

The ceremony, held at the Dominican Cultural Center in Manhattan, drew dozens of journalists, officials and industry figures. Organizers paid a special tribute to the late María Cristina Camilo, recognizing the broadcaster’s legacy and underscoring the event’s blend of cultural memory and forward-looking strategy.

Hernández closed by framing the diaspora as more than visitors or remittance senders: “They are natural ambassadors,” she said, “people who recommend, inspire confidence and spread the Dominican brand across the world.” With that role, the diaspora not only sustains arrivals but multiplies the country’s soft-power reach, a dynamic officials say will be central to maintaining the Dominican Republic’s leadership in Caribbean tourism.