Caribbean Tourism Development, Sustainability, and Impacts

The Caribbean economy is highly dependent on the tourism industry and the protection of the natural and cultural attractions on which it depends is critical. To address this concern, this chapter provides a snapshot of the progress that has been made on sustainable tourism development in the Caribbean region. There is now more demand from the traveling public for industries to be environmentally friendly and in order to continue to use tourism as a means of economic advancement, sustainable practices must be adopted. The evidence suggests that there are great economic, sociocultural, and environmental impacts of tourism in the Caribbean region that are both positive and negative. The actions of the accommodations sector are commendable but there is the need for all major stakeholders to better manage the negative impacts of tourism development. The Caribbean Tourism Organization has developed a policy framework which consists of guiding principles and integrated policies regarding sustainable tourism development, The Caribbean Sustainable Tourism Policy and Development Framework. A shock, such as COVID-19, can lead to economic collapse as communities heavily dependent on tourism have no capacity to respond to the loss of their primary revenue source. However, in order to strengthen the resilience of small island tourism development, the Caribbean region is transitioning toward community-driven solutions through innovation, employee training, upgrades, greater digitalization, and environmental sustainability.