JULY 15, 2003: The Caribbean's tourism industry is showing signs of recovery after two difficult years, according to figures released by the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), in its quarterly publication, Key Tourism Statistics (Keystats).

"Caribbean tourism now appears to be past the lowest point of the downswing and the numbers coming in from member countries show that there are signs of recovery," said Jean Holder, secretary general of the CTO.

Stayover arrivals to the region increased by an estimated seven percent during the winter of 2003 over the same period last year, while cruise passenger visits were up approximately five percent.

Mr. Holder said that the state of the United States dollar and two recent cricket tours of the Caribbean helped boost arrivals during the winter and early summer months of 2003.

"The weakened US dollar has made the region's tourist prices more attractive for Europeans and Canadians while making transatlantic travel more expensive for Americans, encouraging more Americans to consider the Caribbean as an alternative. The Australian and Sri Lankan cricket tours, which attracted cricket fans from Australia and the UK, as well as the US and intra-Caribbean markets, have boosted early summer arrivals to some Caribbean destinations," stated the secretary general.

The Caribbean registered increases of around seven percent from the United States; 21 percent from Canada and six percent from the European market for the winter of 2003.

The Key Tourism Statistics contains a summary of the Caribbean's performance and the outlook for 2003, as well as the performance of the three major international markets Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States - a cruise industry overview and tourist arrivals for CTO member countries.

The quarterly publication is available for purchase online at www.onecaribbean.org.

The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), with headquarters in Barbados and marketing operations in New York, London and Toronto, is the Caribbean's tourism development agency and comprises membership of 32 governments and a myriad of private sector companies.

The CTO's mission is to provide to and through its members, the services and information needed for the development of sustainable tourism for the economic and social benefit of the Caribbean people. The organization provides specialized support and technical assistance to member countries in the areas of marketing, human resource development, research and statistics and sustainable development. The CTO disseminates information on behalf of its member governments to consumers and the travel trade.