PUNTA CANA (RD).- The Hotel and Tourism Association of the Dominican Republic (Asonahores) inaugurated the 2026 edition of the Dominican Annual Tourism Exchange (DATE), the country’s main tourism marketing fair, which will run until Thursday at the Barceló Bávaro Convention Center in Punta Cana.
The purpose of the event is to finalize commercial agreements between local suppliers and international buyers in a context of historic figures for the sector, after the Caribbean destination closed 2025 with 11.6 million visitors and registered 3.7 million arrivals in the first quarter of this year alone.
In this edition, the fair brings together more than 200 companies from more than 20 source markets, more than 300 international buyers and an offer of 120 stands that represent the diversity of the Dominican destination.
The format of the meeting is based on a business roundtable with previously scheduled appointments between tour operators, airlines, hotel chains and suppliers in the sector, which in the previous edition exceeded 8,300 business meetings and aims to increase that number in 2026.
Sustained growth
The Minister of Tourism of the Dominican Republic, David Collado, emphasized in an interview with DIARIO LAS AMÉRICAS the resilience of the Caribbean destination in the face of the complex global panorama.
According to Collado, the Caribbean country recorded the best first quarter in the history of Dominican tourism, “despite the war that affects the world,” he explained, alluding to the war in the Middle East.
Faced with this reality, the minister highlighted the strategy implemented by his administration. “We continue to grow, we continue to be cautious and work by creating alliances and facilitating negotiations between private parties,” he declared.
The impact of these efforts is reflected in air connectivity. The official highlighted recent agreements with various airlines in Canada, Latin America and Europe.
When referring to the Canadian market, Collado assured positive results. “With Canadian airlines, this morning we did extremely well; we guaranteed an average increase of 20 to 25 percent compared to last year in seat capacity,” he said.
Historical quarter
The backdrop of DATE 2026 is an unprecedented start to the year for the sector.
According to data from the Ministry of Tourism (Mitur), between January and March 3,710,374 visitors arrived in the country, an increase of 10.8% compared to the same period in 2025 and 64.1% compared to 2019. Of the total, 2,603,777 entered by air and 1,106,597 did so via cruise ships, which confirms the parallel dynamism of both segments.
The month of March marked a milestone by registering 1,305,866 arrivals, the highest number for a single month in the history of the destination.
The United States consolidated itself as the main issuing market with 45% of arrivals, followed by Canada with 23%, Argentina with 5% and Colombia with 4%.
Hotel occupancy exceeded 86% in the quarter and the tourist satisfaction rating was 4.5 out of 5, according to the official balance presented by Minister David Collado.
The Punta Cana airport concentrated 53% of the air flow, followed by Las Américas, which serves Santo Domingo, with 25%, and Cibao with 10%. The province of La Altagracia, which includes Punta Cana and Bávaro, absorbed 59% of the total arrivals, reaffirming its status as the country’s main receiving pole.
A business platform with Caribbean projection
The 2026 edition of DATE launches a new graphic line focused on the three pillars of the “Country Pride” concept: culture, landscape and gastronomy.
The scenography incorporates technology and new experiential formats, with the participation of local artisans and complementary venues such as Panaca Punta Cana, Dominicania in Downtown Punta Cana and Coco Bongo, where the social and networking events that accompany the central commercial agenda take place.
Aguie Lendor, executive vice president of Asonahores, highlighted the international projection of the event and its role as a driving force to open new markets.
“The records in tourist arrivals, figures that we hope to even surpass this year, demonstrate once again the strength of DATE as a platform for conducting business that promotes this industry without chimneys for which we all work,” said Lendor.
The fair aims to consolidate expansion into emerging markets in Latin America and reinforce European demand, with special attention to Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Colombia, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom and Spain.
According to figures from the Central Bank, South America contributed 1.5 million tourists in 2025, led by Argentina and Colombia, while Europe exceeded one million visitors.
The elimination of the visa between Argentina and the Dominican Republic has been a determining factor for the growth of the southern market, identified as one of the promotional focuses of the event.
