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Underlining Fiji’s re-emergence on the international travel scene, figures released this week by Tourism Fiji show the destination’s visitor intake continues to build strongly with Fiji welcoming more than 280,000 overseas visitors across the January-July period.
Visitor arrivals totalled 58,166 for the month of July, the figure falling just 1.4 per cent shy – or 833 people – of the 58,999 tourists visiting for the same period in 2008.
The July 2009 figure includes a record breaking 24,729 Australians, that figure eclipsing the 21,550 total achieved in 2008 by more than 3000.
It was a similar story with Kiwi visitor arrivals.
The 13,168 visitor arrival total achieved in July 2009 from New Zealand was just 283 less than the record 13,451 achieved in July 2008.
Tourism Fiji CEO Josefa Tuamoto said the seven month figure, a total of 280,530, while still 15 per cent down on qualifying period in 2008, was a strong improvement on the 23.7 per cent visitor deficit recorded for the first three months of 2009.
Mr Tuamoto attributed the visitor arrival growth to the success achieved by the national tourist office in keeping Fiji’s profile high and its ongoing high impact marketing strategies in both its mature and developing visitor source markets.
“When you consider the effects the January floods had on our international visitor arrivals earlier in the year and the ongoing global recession, Fiji looks to be gathering strength for a very strong finish to the year,” he said
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
