United States residents accounted for 6.5 percent of Caribbean visitors in the first four months of 2010. The five, most popular destinations are San Juan, Puerto Rico, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Nassau, Bahamas and Aruba.
The Caribbean tourism industry employs about 1.9 million people, 11 percent of the region's workforce. In Jamaica, the latter figure is 25 percent. The industry accounts for 12.8 percent of the region's economic activity. The beach, luxury, family time and adventure are the most popular activities that attract tourists.
Economic weakness in the United States, Britain and Canada for example, challenge the Caribbean tourism industry. In 2009, for example, the economic recession caused a 3 percent drop in Caribbean tourism. This was a devastating blow to the region, one that hadn't been experienced since 2002.
While the Caribbean has a healthy tourism industry, there is a wide disparity among the individual communities. For example, the larger destinations -- Dominican Republic, Cuba, Puerto Rico -- thrive, but less traveled or well-known destinations struggle to survive.
