ABSTRACT
The purpose of this chapter is to provide a broad overview of tourism development in the Caribbean. As the region is comprised of small island states (or island microstates (Wilkinson 1989)), the nature of tourism in such environments is discussed with the goal of considering the natural, social and economic constraints facing island environments worldwide. The context of tourism development in the Caribbean is presented based on three broad themes: the meaning of tourism development through the lens of both neo-colonialism and dependency theories; tourism in small islands; and factors in Caribbean tourism development, particularly in terms of sustainable development.
