Caribbean tourism in 2026: yachts, rooms, targets
Trinidad wants tourism at 12% of GDP by 2030, while St Kitts and St Vincent chase yacht spending. What each plan says and what can't yet be measured.
Trinidad and Tobago has set a target to double tourism's share of its economy, from about 6 percent to 12 percent by 2030. Other islands are making similar bets, with St Kitts and Nevis and St Vincent and the Grenadines both pushing to earn more from visiting yachts.
The common thread is a shift away from counting arrivals towards asking how much each visitor spends and where that money goes. For tour operators, marinas and suppliers, that is where the opportunities are.
Trinidad and Tobago's plan
In May 2026, the Ministry of Trade, Investment and Tourism presented its year-one report. It values the 12 percent target at US$1.7 billion and names six priority areas:
| Segment | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Eco tourism | Over 100 sites mapped, with Maracas Beach and Caroni Bird Sanctuary flagged for urgent upgrades |
| Sport tourism | Cycling at the National Cycling Velodrome and swimming at the National Aquatic Centre |
| Yachting | Faster clearance, aiming for 3,000 yacht arrivals by 2030 |
| Entertainment and culture | Carnival, food, music, film, fashion and gaming treated as separate products |
| Business tourism | Conferences and meetings |
| Health and education tourism | Medical and study visits |
The ministry also lists nine committed hotel projects, with 577 new rooms and 741 permanent jobs, due by 2027 or 2028. These are the government's own figures.
Yachting: the clearest turnaround test
Yacht arrivals to Trinidad and Tobago fell from about 2,600 in 2000 to under 800 in 2025. The ministry partly blames slow, outdated clearance.
Two fixes were announced. SailClear, an online system where crews file customs and immigration details before arrival, went live in June 2026, starting with the Chaguaramas marinas. The ministry says it cuts clearance from about four hours to 15 minutes. A new Port Health office is meant to cut health clearance from two days to under two minutes.
The goal is to double yacht arrivals within two years. The ministry puts the foreign exchange potential at about US$200 million.
Other islands are chasing the same boats
St Kitts and Nevis
In January, Prime Minister Terrance Drew said more than 125 yachts had arrived in a short period since marina operator Safe Harbor set up there, with over 500 more enquiries. He said yachting could become "even bigger than the cruise sector." The government wants Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College to start training young people for yacht services and marine trades.
St Vincent and the Grenadines
In March, Tourism Minister Kishore Shallow said an estimated 36 percent of yachts in the Eastern Caribbean pass through St Vincent's waters, but many are not serviced locally and spend their money elsewhere. Better marinas are now a government priority.
Both cases point to the same lesson. A yacht that sails through without stopping for repairs, fuel or food earns an island almost nothing.
Measuring what matters
Targets like "12 percent of GDP" need a reliable way to count tourism spending. Many islands do not have one.
The British Virgin Islands is unusually open about this. Its 2026–2036 tourism plan admits the territory lacks a Tourism Satellite Account, the standard statistical method for measuring tourism's share of the economy. It also notes there are no data-sharing agreements between the public and private sectors. The plan commits to bringing back the account and setting up an independent Film Commission.
Without that kind of measurement, a GDP target is hard to check. It is worth watching whether Trinidad's Central Statistical Office publishes figures that match the ministry's.
What this means for businesses
If you sell to tourists or the businesses that serve them, the plans point to clear openings:
- Marine services, such as repairs, chandlery, provisioning and crew services, especially around Chaguaramas.
- Guided eco tours at upgraded sites.
- Event services for sport, culture and business visitors.
- Online booking and payment. Many tour and villa operators still close sales on WhatsApp, and a clear payment link, like those covered in our Wam post, helps turn interest into bookings.
What to watch
Watch the yacht arrival figures for 2026 and 2027 against the under-800 baseline. Watch whether St Kitts' yacht training courses start as planned and whether St Vincent invests in marinas. In Trinidad, watch whether the hotel projects open on time and whether official statistics back up the tourism GDP figures.