Miami (Latinvex): The Dominican Republic is cementing its position as a star in Latin American tourism, ranking as the leader in receipts as a percent of GDP and as the second-largest tourism market and earner in the region after Mexico.
The Dominican Republic last year netted tourism receipts of $9.8 billion, an increase of 16.1% from 2022.
When compared with the GDP of the Dominican Republic that translates to 8.1%, according to a Latinvex analysis, that is the highest rate in Latin America and nearly fivefold the regional average of 1.8%. By comparison, Mexico’s receipts-GDP rate is only 1.7%.
This year, Dominican tourism receipts should hit $10.4 billion, according to estimates by the World Travel & Tourism Council.
The Dominican Republic welcomed a record 10.3 million tourists last year, a 43.9% jump from 2022.
Those numbers are the equivalent of 96% of the total Dominican population. Only Uruguay has more. By comparison, the average in Latin America is 17.7%.
All in all, Latin American tourism arrivals grew 23.3% last year to 115.4 million, while receipts increased 21.1% to $118 billion.
Argentina led the way in increased arrivals (up 87.3%), followed by Chile (at 83.7%). Meanwhile, Chile led the way in receipts growth (up 117.7%), followed by Argentina (at 56.7%).
By Joachim Bamrud, Latinvex.