Caribbean & Central America - March 2006 (ISSN 1741-4458)

There are growing questions about the quality of the country's tourist earnings. In 2005 the average tourist spends only US$103.7 a day during their time in the country. Of all Caribbean destinations, only Cuba has a lower figure.

Tourists volumes are fine. In January, one of the key months, the number of tourists flying into the country was up by 7%, compared with January 2005, at 316,652.

The problem is spending. In Puerto Rico, tourists spend over US$160 a day while in more up-market destinations such as the Bahamas and Aruba, tourists spend on average over US$250 a day.

Worryingly, the DR seems to the losing ground in Europe, and especially Germany. The US send 51% of the country's tourists in January and Europe just under 42%, down from 43% in the whole of 2005.