Caribbean cruise visits were down 0.5 percent for the first six months of 2018, according to Hugh Riley, secretary general, who spoke at this week’s Caribbean Tourism Organization’s conference in the Bahamas.

Riley said in a prepared statement that of 23 reporting destinations, 15 posted increases year-over-year, including Martinique which saw a 54.7 percent increase. The biggest drop off, however, was in the British Virgin Islands, down 90 percent, Dominica down 88 percent, St. Maarten down 27.5 percent and the U.S. Virgin Islands, down 22.5 percent.

He added that the region’s competitive advantages of a diverse tourism product and safety and security are still intact. And that destinations that were impacted by last year’s hurricanes are rebuilding with new tourism products and services being restored.

Overall, cruise tourism is projected to grow by five to six percent for the year, Riley said.

On the region’s tourism performance, he said it has been a tale of two situations: robust growth in countries not affected by last year’s hurricanes and dramatic decreases in arrivals to those hit by the storms.

Of 22 reporting destinations, 13 registered increases in land-based tourism arrivals during the first half of the year, ranging from 1.7 percent to 18.3 percent.

Seven million tourists from the United States visited the Caribbean for land vacations, but that was a 15.8 percent decrease from last mainly due to a 54.6 percent drop in arrivals to Puerto Rico and decreases in arrivals to Cuba, according to the CTO.

Arrivals from Canada were up, totaling 2.4 million, while Europe was largely flat year-over-year with 3 million visitors.

The CTO predicted an overall decline in land tourism arrivals between 3 and 4 percent this year, but expects a 4.3 percent increase next year.