SANTO DOMINGO – The Dominican Republic’s tourism sector has hit a historic milestone, posting a record number of international visitor arrivals through the first eight months of 2026, according to official data released by Tourism Minister David Collado. Between January and August, the Caribbean destination welcomed 8,556,415 total visitors, marking a 6.9% year-over-year increase compared to the same period in 2025.
Breaking down the overall arrivals figures, 6,610,258 tourists entered the country via air travel, while 1,946,157 arrived on cruise ships. When compared to pre-pandemic levels from 2019, the current eight-month total reflects a dramatic 58.9% jump, signaling that the Dominican Republic’s tourism industry has not only fully recovered from global travel disruptions but is now outperforming pre-crisis levels by a substantial margin. Even against 2024 figures, the 2026 count shows a healthy 9.8% expansion, confirming consistent, long-term growth momentum for the sector.
The upward trend held strong in the final month of the reporting period as well: August 2026 alone drew 856,858 total visitors. This represents a 6.2% year-over-year increase over August 2025, a 5.4% rise from August 2024, and a 52.3% gain compared to the same month in 2019. A closer look at August’s breakdown shows outsized growth in cruise travel: air arrivals hit 725,560 for a modest 2.6% annual gain, while cruise passenger arrivals surged 31.9% year-over-year to reach 131,298.
The United States continues to anchor the Dominican Republic’s source market, accounting for 44% of all tourist arrivals in August. Rounding out the top source markets are Canada at 9%, Colombia at 8%, Argentina at 5%, Spain and the United Kingdom at 4% apiece, and Puerto Rico and Mexico at 3% each.
On the infrastructure side, the country’s major airports reflect the concentration of tourism activity in key resort regions. Punta Cana International Airport, the primary gateway to the country’s most popular eastern beach destinations, handled 49% of all incoming air tourist traffic. It was followed by Las Américas International Airport near Santo Domingo with 29% and Cibao International Airport in the country’s northern region with 14%. Puerto Plata and Higüero airports each captured 3% of traffic, while La Romana and Samaná airports accounted for 1% each.
Beyond raw arrival numbers, industry metrics point to strong visitor satisfaction and healthy hospitality performance. Average hotel occupancy across the country hit 68% in August, and the average visitor satisfaction rating came in at 4.3 out of a possible 5 points. Most notably, survey data from the Ministry of Tourism shows that 90% of recent visitors stated they would plan a return trip to the Dominican Republic, and 60% said they would actively recommend the Caribbean destination to friends, family, and social contacts. This high level of visitor loyalty bodes well for sustained future growth as the country works to build on its record 2026 results.