Demand for travel to St. Kitts & Nevis continues to rise, with air arrivals for the first two months of this year posting a year-to-date increase of 15.3 per cent system-wide as compared to the same period in 2018.

Results are even better from North America, the destination’s largest source market, registering a year-to-date increase in air arrivals of 19.3 per cent for January and February as compared to last year.

This continues the growth of airlift from major gateways in 2018, which increased over 2017 by 9.3 per cent system-wide and reached a total of 153,364 air passenger arrivals for the full year, the highest number ever recorded in the destination’s history.

“I am extremely pleased to see such strong increases in air passenger arrivals to our federation for 2018 continuing into peak season 2019,” said the Lindsay Grant, minister of tourism for St. Kitts & Nevis.

“These numbers are a clear indication that we are gaining momentum towards reaching our goal of 150,000 stayover visitors in the next few years.”

St. Kitts’ marketing strategy maintains a particular focus on reaching individuals who are a match with the geo-demographic lifestyle data of its target visitors in key gateway markets to support airlift year-round as well as marquee island events including St. Kitts Music Festival. 

In the fourth quarter of 2018, additional digital, print and spot TV advertising combined with public relations to communicate special offers and raise brand awareness in and around select North American cities comprised a coordinated campaign to grow arrivals for peak season 2018-2019. 

“We redoubled our marketing efforts in the fourth quarter of last year specifically to support our additional peak season air service and these numbers demonstrate that we have achieved very successful results,” added Racquel Brown, chief executive of the St. Kitts Tourism Authority.

“With the milestone airlift arrivals recorded for 2018 and performance last year in the months of March and June nearing 30 per cent growth over the same months in 2017, the significant growth measured so far in 2019 signals a rising demand for St. Kitts as a highly desirable travel destination, particularly from North America and for key events such as St. Kitts Music Festival.”