WILLEMSTAD – Curaçao’s cruise industry has not only recovered from the decline recorded during the first half of last year but has now surpassed its first-half 2024 passenger total, according to the latest tourism figures.
The island received 515,556 cruise passengers aboard 204 cruise vessels between January and June 2026, according to the Curaçao Ports Authority.
The result marks a turnaround from 2025.
Figures published by the Curaçao Tourist Board show that 500,054 cruise passengers visited during the first half of 2024. That total fell by 5 percent to 473,795 during the corresponding period of 2025.
With 515,556 passengers in the first half of this year, Curaçao has now exceeded both previous totals.
Compared with the first six months of 2024, cruise passenger traffic is approximately 3 percent higher.
More Ships Calling at Curaçao
Growth in vessel calls has been even more pronounced.
Curaçao recorded 181 cruise calls in the first half of 2024 and 184 in the first half of 2025. This year, that number climbed to 204.
The increase means Curaçao handled 23 more cruise calls during the first six months of 2026 than during the same period two years earlier.
The Curaçao Ports Authority attributes the broader development of the sector to cooperation among the stakeholders involved in cruise tourism.
The authority has invested over the years in accommodating larger cruise vessels and expanding capacity. Cruise ships can use Curaçao’s Mega Pier facilities or berths along the Otrobanda side of St. Anna Bay. CPA says cruise tourism contributes to economic activity in downtown Willemstad through retail spending, excursions and other visitor expenditures.
Cruise Tourism Part of Broader Visitor Growth
Cruise passengers accounted for more than half of the nearly 970,000 visitors recorded across Curaçao’s main tourism categories during the first half of 2026.
The island welcomed more than 437,000 stayover visitors during the same period, while almost 16,000 were day visitors. Stayover and cruise tourism both recorded year-on-year growth, while the number of day visitors declined sharply.
Cruise tourism nevertheless remains seasonal. June illustrates that growth is not uniform throughout the year: passenger arrivals during that month declined by around 9 percent year-on-year to just over 39,000.
Despite that monthly decline, the first-half performance shows the sector entered the second half of 2026 ahead of both 2024 and 2025 in terms of total cruise passenger arrivals.
The latest figures also underline the growing importance of managing cruise growth alongside Curaçao’s expanding stayover tourism sector, as increasing visitor volumes place greater demands on Willemstad, transportation, attractions and other tourism infrastructure.