Tourism to This Caribbean Island Is Trending Faster Than Anywhere Else in the Region
The floating bridge. The never-ending party at Mambo. The beach days at Bida. Dinners at the Brass Boer. Green rum. The Caribbean island of Curacao just keeps getting more popular, and it’s showing no signs of slowing down.
Curacao had another huge month in February: the hotspot posted a 20 percent increase in stayover arrivals (meaning people who come and actually spend the night, rather than just cruise passengers). That represented a total of 12,398 visitors for the month. But more importantly, it was the highest tourism growth rate of any Caribbean destination last month, putting the island right at the top of the regional tourism machine right now.
So far, Curacao has seen just under 73,300 overnight visitors in 2025, showing what officials are calling “continued demand in arrivals in the peak season.” That’s a bit of an understatement for an island that has seen a largely unbroken boulevard of strong travel numbers for almost three years now.
That’s a trend that began when Sandals opened its first-ever all-inclusive on the island in the summer of 2022, a watershed for Curacao that, most significantly, helped reposition the destination in the US market.
In fact, Curacao is getting so popular that the island’s tourist board just launched a study to ensure it can keep growing in a sustainable way, concerned about what’s happened to larger destinations (mostly in Europe) that have been faced with the scourge of what’s now commonly called “overtourism,” a term first coined by Skift.
Americans just seem to be loving Curacao, for its unique blend of a charming, walkable, historic capital with some rather spectacular beaches, particularly the ones we’ve traveled to on the western coast.
What’s also changed in the last few years is more than just one Sandals. Curacao has quietly welcomed an excellent group of new hotels, particularly in the all-inclusive segment, from brands like Corendon and Hilton.
That includes places like the Rif at Mangrove Beach (rooms from $251 per night right now) and Wyndham’s Kunuku Aqua Resort, where you can get rooms as low as $212 per night all-inclusive.
Of course, Curacao may not be the “traditional” all-inclusive destination you may be thinking of — it’s not Cancun, for example. This Dutch Caribbean island is one that begs to be explored, that demands you rent a car and go dive deep into the destination. It’s easy to get around, safe, and fun, and it’s the kind of place where you can just pull up to an unknown beach bar and feel right at home.
So what about getting there? As you can imagine, the growth in hotels and visits has been accompanied by expanded airlift.
The best fare to the island right now? Nonstop from Fort Lauderdale to Curacao on Brazilian carrier Azul, which currently has prices for about $378 roundtrip, according to options from Google Flights. Thanks to new (and relaunched) routes, you can get to Curacao from most major source markets in the US, from Atlanta to New York to Miami.
