MVA eyes emerging Chinese, Russian markets

China and Russia could become the new frontier for the Commonwealth’s efforts to market itself as a tourist destination abroad in the coming decade, yet officials with the Marianas Visitors Authority for now are expecting an upswing in tourism among key Asian markets in the near term after an aggressive marketing campaign.

Tourism in the Commonwealth has suffered in recent years, a decline some experts attribute to a recent slump in the Asian economy. Yet the MVA’s efforts to boost the number of visitors to the Commonwealth from nation’s like Korea and Japan appear to have seen some success, according to the agency’s managing director for Japan, Michael Merner.

At an MVA meeting Monday, Merner cited statistics showing a recent 35-percent jump in Korean tourism and a 27-percent increase in Japanese tourism, a boost linked to the MVA’s efforts to raise the number of flights arriving on Saipan through airlines like Northwest and Asiana. As tourism officials try to build on these gains, he said, Russia and China are the MVA’s next likely targets for marketing the Commonwealth.

“China and Russia are, of course, what’s on the horizon and as we look 10 years down the road, that’s where the significant growth is going to be,” he said, noting MVA’s recent efforts to establish chartered airplane services from Russia. “Both in China and Russia, the MVA is laying the groundwork, laying the foundation.”

The growing number of Chinese travelers is the primary attraction for any potential MVA effort in China, Merner added. With an estimated 41 million outbound travelers each year, which could jump to 100 million by 2020, the Chinese market is a significant and as yet untapped source of tourists for the Commonwealth, he said. “The growth in the world tourism market over the next 10 years is definitely going to be in China and that’s one place we need to focus.”

In contrast, the number of Russian tourists likely to visit the Commonwealth is much lower but this demographic could nonetheless contribute significantly to the economy.

“In terms of the Russian market, it’s not so much the growth but what they spend,” Merner said. “They spend way more than anyone else when they come here.”

MVA’s work in Japan could also see an expansion in the coming year, Merner added, as the agency is looking at the Japanese cities of Fukokoa and Sendai for potential marketing efforts.

Meanwhile, although MVA board chair Jerry Tan welcomed the early signs of the local tourism market’s recovery, he noted in an interview that the rising cost of jet fuel has proven a significant problem for airlines that serve the Commonwealth. To bolster tourism in Korea and Japan, he said MVA is working on increasing air travel service and a host of promotions and marketing efforts.

“It seems like we’re getting strong support from the tourism industry,” Tan said. “We do need to encourage all our travel trade partners to support the destination.”