NMI loses nearly 100K tourists

The CNMI lost nearly 100,000 tourists in Fiscal Year 2006, owing primarily to the pullout of Japan Airlines in October 2005.

Latest data from the Marianas Visitors Authority showed that from the Japanese market alone, the CNMI lost 95,971 tourists from October 2005 to September 2006. From 376,263 in FY 2005, Japan arrivals went down to 280,292 in FY 2006.

JAL used to bring in some 155,000 passengers a year. Japan arrivals reflect about 70 percent of the total arrivals in the CNMI.

The decline in the Japan market was offset a bit by other markets, resulting in an overall loss of 85,745 tourists in FY 2006.

MVA statistics released yesterday showed that a total of 443,812 tourists arrived in the Northern Marianas during the period, a 16-percent drop from FY 2005, which saw 529,557 tourists.

In September 2006, only 33,787 tourists came to the CNMI—a 26-percent plunge from the total arrivals of 45,859 in September 2005.

The 443,812 total arrivals in FY 2006 are from the following markets:

– Japan 280,292;

– South Korea 80,764 [24 percent up];

– China 36,978 [14 percent up];

– Guam 21,513 [7 percent down];

– United States 11,497 [32 percent down];

– Philippines 3,690 [4 percent down]

– Hong Kong 1,407 [56 percent down]

– Taiwan – 756 [73 percent down];

– Other areas 6,915 [17 percent up].

For the entire fiscal year, the CNMI posted the biggest decline in January 2006 at 21 percent and in September 2006 at 26 percent.

For its part, MVA said yesterday that the arrivals in FY 2006 exceeded its projection by 33,312.

“This number is 7 percent higher than the arrival projections in the Governor’s Five-Year Strategic Plan. The projected arrivals had been set at 412,500 and actual arrivals were 443,812,” said the MVA in a statement.

It said that two inbound destinations led the way with higher than projected arrivals. It said that Japan exceeded its projected arrival numbers by 30,292 or a 12-percent increase over the original projection. Korea also exceeded their arrival numbers by 8,764 or 12 percent up over the original projected numbers.

MVA attributed “the success of exceeding the projections from the Japan market” to Northwest Airlines’ addition of the night-time flights from Narita and “the very successful summer newspaper campaign to support the flights.”

It said the newspaper campaign was funded by MVA, the central government, and the private sector.

MVA said the Korean market went up due to various promotional events such as the holding of the Miss Korea Pageant at Saipan World Resort, the online promotion by Coca Cola and Saipan World Resort, and the Starmax filming of a Korean drama during the summer that had just finished airing in Korea.

The drama, Foolish My Love, had 13.2 million viewers per week, said MVA.

The drama aired two episodes per week on Friday night for 10 weeks totaling 20 episodes.

“I am very pleased with our arrival numbers,” said MVA managing director Perry Tenorio. “It’s no secret that we have and continue to face tough times in the tourism industry but exceeding our arrival expectations in the first year of the Five-Year Strategic Plan assures me that we are executing the plan in a way that will allow us to reach our goal of 1 million tourists by 2010,” said Tenorio in the statement.

“Our industry partners and stakeholders have been instrumental in helping us exceed our arrival numbers,” said MVA board chair Jerry Tan. “The MVA board is committed to work hard to assure that we meet or exceed our arrival expectations over the next four years. We will continue to work under the motto that ‘Tourism is Everyone’s Business.’”