Antigua & Barbuda welcomed more than 300,000 visitors during 2019, leading to celebrations among officials from the tourism board at V.C. Bird International Airport.
It was a festive afternoon, as masquerades and dancers in colourful costumes begun celebrating on the bandstand and greeting passengers in an extravagant cultural display.
Antigua minister of tourism, Charles Fernandez, minister of state in the ministry of tourism, Mary-Clare Hurst, chairman of the Antigua & Barbuda Tourism Authority, Lorraine Raeburn, general manager of Sandals Grande Antigua Resort & Spa, Matthew Cornall, and other airport and tourism officials awaited the announcement.
“We have seen incredible year-over-year growth every month this year so far,” said Fernandez during the reception.
“Almost every key market is seeing incredible growth, in particular the US, Caribbean and the UK.
“These markets have all contributed to the double digit increase in stayover air arrivals that we are celebrating this year.”
The minister noted that November figures showed the largest monthly double-digit increase ever, with nearly 30,000 stays recorded, up 31 per cent on last year.
In 2015, the government of Antigua & Barbuda transformed the V.C. Bird International Airport, opening a modern terminal, with increased capacity, faster passenger processing times and enhanced facilities to meet a strategic growth plan for tourism.
