User talk:2601:989:4580:A9E0:3849:17C8:BDA7:24AA

Tourism is one of the region's major economic sectors, with 25 million visitors contributing $49 billion towards the area's gross domestic product in 2013, which represented 14% of its total GDP. This puts the region twelfth in the world in terms of tourism's absolute contribution to GDP, but first as a proportion of GDP. In terms of employment, 11.3% of the region's jobs depend on tourism either directly or indirectly.[1] It is often described as "the most tourism-dependent region in the world".[13][14][15]

Caribbean islands now depend on tourism for their economy, it being referred to as "the engine of their growth".[16] Tourism is a huge contributor to the economies of all Caribbean countries and the biggest contributor to many of them such as Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas and the Virgin Islands.[citation needed] It provides a steady revenue stream, with temporary blips due to hurricanes or recessions in the Western world[17] and supports local farming, fishing, and retail industries.[18] Barbados, for instance, has moved from a primarily agricultural economy to a service-based economy that supports tourism. By 2006, tourism brought in ten times more to the Barbados economy than sugar cane production, $167 million versus $14.5 billion.[19]

American 757 on final approach to Saint Maarten Airport Besides hotels and restaurants, services to tourism have required additional infrastructure, including: airports, roads, sewage treatment plants, landfills, electricity supply and telephones.[20]

Much of the profit from tourism is earned by corporations outside of the Caribbean since, "two-thirds of the hotel rooms in the region are foreign owned, and the tour companies who arrange visitor's activities are often foreign owned".[20] The more luxurious the accommodations, the more likely that profits are made by foreign firms. Further, many resorts are all-inclusive, and vacationers of these resorts rarely eat out at locally owned restaurants, rent water sports gear from local entrepreneurs, or arrange island tours with local taxis.[21] Most of the food served at hotels is imported, locally grown fruit, such as breadfruit, bananas, mangos, and citrus is rarely served. Only about 30% of money spent by foreign visitors remains in the Caribbean, the rest is retained by overseas firms.[21]

Tourism development has driven up the cost of food and land, land which may be purchased for hotel, marina, and other tourist facility development by companies able to afford the price.[22] If they have a home, they may be pushed out of their residence due to the high cost of living or hotel construction.[22]

Today some West Indians are seeing features of the colonial situation resurrected by tourism. Locals are denied access to their own beaches, the best jobs go to non-nationals or those with the lightest skin, and humble service roles and low-wage jobs predominate in the tourism sector.