SINT MAARTEN (GREAT BAY) - The Department of Statistics records all visitors (including transfers) arriving at the St. Maarten Princess Juliana International Airport and refers to them as Air Passenger Arrivals. Due to St. Maarten’s unique location, some travellers use it as a hub to reach nearby islands, including French St. Martin.
The full implementation of the new digital immigration system has improved the accuracy of arrival data; however, certain limitations remain, such as the inability to distinguish between transfer passengers, residents, or European citizens, which affects the completeness of detailed Passenger Arrival statistics.
The Department of Statistics no longer uses the term “Stay-over visitors,” as it does not fully capture the true nature of all air tourism in St. Maarten.
Passenger Arrivals Results
- The year overview indicates that total Air Passenger Arrivals for 2025 amounted to 855,994. Quarter 1 (Q1) recorded 256,923 arrivals, representing 30% of the annual total. Quarter 2 (Q2) followed with 209,877 arrivals (24.5%), while Quarter 3 (Q3) accounted for 168,915 arrivals (19.7%). Quarter 4 (Q4) recorded 220,279 passenger arrivals by air, representing the remaining 25.7% of the total market share for the year.
- The North American market, comprising the United States and Canada, recorded a combined total of 541,615 air passenger arrivals, representing approximately 63.3% of total arrivals in 2025.
- Of this total, the United States, our largest source market, accounted for 462,038 arrivals, representing 53.9% of the overall market and approximately 85.3% of the North American market. The U.S. averaged over 45,000 passengers per month by air.
- The European Union, our second-largest market, recorded 221,179 air passenger arrivals, representing approximately 25.8% of total arrivals in 2025.
Within the EU market, France emerged as the leading source country with 87,952 passengers, accounting for approximately 39.8% of the EU market and 10.3% of total air arrivals. The Netherlands followed closely with 85,741 passengers, representing approximately 38.8% of the EU market and 10.0% of total arrivals.
- Continuing with the other regions, the Caribbean recorded a total of 43,986 air passenger arrivals, representing approximately 5.1% of total arrivals in 2025, with a monthly average of over 3,500 passengers.
The Central and South America region accounted for 25,484 arrivals, representing approximately 3.0% of the total market, averaging more than 2,000 passengers by air per month, with August emerging as the peak travel month.
- The Rest of the World recorded a total of 15,730 air passenger arrivals, representing approximately 1.8% of total arrivals in 2025, with a monthly average exceeding 1,200 passengers.
Cruise Arrivals Results
- Cruise visitors to St. Maarten recorded a total of 1,597,940 in 2025. Of this total, the First Quarter (Q1) accounted for 635,968 visitors, representing 39.8% of annual cruise arrivals. The Second Quarter (Q2) recorded 236,391 visitors (14.8%), while the Third Quarter (Q3) accounted for 164,881 visitors (10.3%). The Fourth Quarter (Q4) contributed 560,700 visitors, representing 35.1% of the total cruise market for the year.
- Growth was recorded in every quarter (2025) from previous year (2024): 11% in Q1, 14% in Q2, 23% in Q3, and 22% in Q4, resulting in an overall 16% increase compared to 2024.
- Cruise calls are nearing the pre-Hurricane Irma milestone of 600, with all high-season months surpassing the previous year’s figures.
- Comparing cruise calls from 2024 (513) to 2025 (592) shows an addition of 79 ships, representing a 15% increase.
- In the fourth quarter, cruise arrivals grew by nearly 100,000 tourists—a 22% increase over the same period in 2024—bringing the total for 2025 to over 220,000 more cruise passengers than in 2024.
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