The Dutch Caribbean island of Curacao just hit a major milestone in its tourism history, topping 500,000 stay over arrivals for the calendar year. 

It’s the first time the destination has ever recorded more than 500,000 stay over visitors in a single year, continuing a trend of surging tourism numbers that largely began in the summer of 2022. That renaissance largely began with the debut of the Sandals Royal Curacao resort, which helped spur significant growth in arrivals, particularly from the all-important United States market. 

In a statement, the Curacao Tourist Board wished a “heartfelt thank you to “visitors, locals, and partners, who played a role in reaching this milestone and contribute to our thriving island.”

The numbers have been accompanied by similarly strong hotel occupancy numbers on the island. 

That has helped Curacao to become one of the biggest success stories of the post-pandemic age in the Caribbean.