by Brian Major
Last updated: 3:24 PM ET, Tue September 17, 2019
Anguilla is the most recent Caribbean country to report strong 2019 visitor growth. The island is "well on its way" to achieving a 20 percent year-over-year increase in overnight arrivals, said Anguilla Tourist Board (ATB) officials.
The positive results follow earlier reports of growing arrivals for the boutique Caribbean destination.
Anguilla recorded 55,916 land-based, overnight arrivals between January and June of this year, an increase of 26 percent over the same period in 2016 (44,368 arrivals) and a 16.8 percent increase over the 47,894 arrivals posted during the same period in 2017, the previous annual high, officials said.
"We are delighted to see the results of the intense work we have put into the marketing and promotion of Anguilla," said Cardigan Connor, Anguilla's parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of Tourism.
"With events such as our recent Summer Festival and the upcoming Anguilla Cup we are confident we will continue to attract and grow the number of visitors to [Anguilla]," he said.
The fourth annual Anguilla Cup tennis competition will be held from November 4 to 9 at the Anguilla Tennis Academy. The event is sanctioned by the International Tennis Federation, the Anguilla National Tennis Association and the Central American and Caribbean Tennis Confederation and hosted by ATB.
This year's event has been upgraded to an ITF Grade 3 event, enabling ATB to create a larger, more prestigious tournament that will attract more participants, playing at higher levels, officials said.
"We made a commitment to The Anguilla Cup as we believe that it delivers on all our strategic objectives: growing our visitor arrivals, expanding our tourism product, dispersing our tourism dollars and empowering our local athletic communities," said Connor.
Anguilla tourism received a significant boost last summer with the re-opening of the island's ferry terminal, which revived a key link between Anguilla and St. Maarten.
The ferries are a primary means of access for thousands of Anguilla-bound travelers flying into St. Maarten's Princess Juliana airport, a top regional hub for flights from the U.S., Canada, and other Caribbean nations. The terminal closed in September after suffering extensive damage during Hurricane Irma.
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