Although it wasn’t on the bingo card of most travel industry forecasters, the Caribbean hotel industry is having a historically good year so far in 2026, according to new data provided to Caribbean Journal by analytics firm STR.
Local hotel occupancy rose 5.5% to 66.7% in May, marking the fifth consecutive month of positive growth earlier this year.
As a result, average daily rates increased 4.1% to $332.28, and revenue per available room increased 10% to $221.52.
Not only are these impressive numbers, they are also record-breaking and the highest occupancy rates in the region for May.
The huge surge in Canadian tourism to the Caribbean as travel to Cuba was halted is a rather compelling place to start, but it’s difficult to point to one individual factor (something we report on in more depth here).
According to data from STR, hotel occupancy in the region was very solid this year at 74.1%, up 4.6% compared to the same period in 2025. During the same period, interest rates rose 6.2%, and profits so far in 2026 have risen 11%.
This is a very healthy sign for the region after a decidedly mixed bag in 2025, and one that could portend an even bigger second half for the Caribbean islands.
STR’s data looked at 2,057 hotels comprising approximately 264,067 rooms across the wider region.
