The US Virgin Islands and St Maarten are leading the way for international visitor growth in the Caribbean right now, according to new data from analytics firm ForwardKeys. 

The United States Virgin Islands saw a 22 percent increase in international arrivals in the first quarter of 2023, compared to the same period in 2019, before the pandemic. 

The US Virgin Islands, which has seen more visitor growth than any other destination in the region since before the onset of the pandemic, was followed by St Maarten, which saw 18 percent growth in international arrivals in the same period. 

ForwardKeys’ data was based on tickets confirmed for international arrivals between Jan. 1 and March 31. 

Coming in third place was the French Caribbean department of Guadeloupe at 17 percent, followed by the Turks and Caicos Islands at 17 percent and the Dominican Republic at 12 percent. 

It’s another testament to the USVI’s surging tourism performance, a trend that largely began with a smartly-managed reopening plan during the peak of the pandemic.