Canadians are increasingly choosing sunny escapes amid higher airfares, global tensions, and cooling ties with the United States, particularly during winter. The Cayman Islands, a self-governing British Overseas Territory between Jamaica and Cuba, achieved record visitor numbers from Canada last year.
Record Canadian Arrivals in 2025
The islands welcomed 32,206 stay-over visitors from Canada in 2025, marking the first country to exceed pre-pandemic levels with a 7.1 percent year-over-year increase. Monthly records occurred in March, July, September, November, and December.
Meanwhile, Canadian trips to the United States dropped 22 percent in the first half of 2025, according to Statistics Canada. Although the U.S. dominates with 82.2 percent of visitors, Canada outperformed third-place Britain, which accounted for 3.1 percent or over 14,000 arrivals.
Impressive 2026 Kickoff
The new year began robustly, with February recording 49,075 stay-over visitors, up 10.1 percent year over year and the second-highest February total ever. Canada fueled this growth, sending 6,102 visitors—a 47 percent surge and the highest monthly figure on record.
Including cruise passengers, total visitors reached 208,992 that month, more than double the islands’ population of about 89,000.
Declines Elsewhere in the Caribbean
Not all destinations shared this success. Jamaica, Barbados, Saint Lucia, Dominica, Anguilla, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Bonaire, and Antigua and Barbuda saw fewer Canadian visitors in 2025, linked to rising costs, shifting preferences, and regional competition.
Boost from Airlines and Marketing
Expanded air links played a key role. Porter Airlines launched five weekly flights from Toronto and Ottawa to Grand Cayman’s Owen Roberts International Airport near George Town in December.
“Grand Cayman is the fifth sun vacation market that Porter is launching this winter from both Toronto Pearson and Ottawa,” stated Andrew Pierce, the airline’s vice president of network planning and reporting. “Canadians’ travel interest in the Caribbean is steadily growing and now they can easily access the Cayman Islands from two prominent hubs in our network.”
Air Canada, WestJet, and Air Transat also provide service, with Canadian capacity rising 28 percent year over year.
Marketing efforts intensified too. In November, a week-long partnership with Rogers reached over a million Breakfast Television viewers. The Cayman Islands Department of Tourism recently teamed up with Canada’s M5 agency for media strategy, targeting premium travelers.
“By partnering with an agency that brings deep insight into Canadian travellers and proven expertise in destination marketing, we are strengthening our ability to attract high-value visitors, support airlift, and drive sustainable growth for the Cayman Islands tourism industry,” said Gary Rutty, minister for tourism and trade development.
