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Tourist arrivals climb 11 percent in Feb.
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Posted on Mar 10 2000
Visitor arrivals for the month of February 2000 jumped 11 percent compared to the same month of the previous year totaling 45,997, according to the Marianas Visitors Authority.
Arrivals from Japan, the island’s biggest source of tourists, increased 12 percent. Korean market shot up 30 percent. The U.S. mainland tourist arrivals slightly grew by seven percent while Guam posted a four percent hike.
MVA has already developed with travel agents in Japan a marketing campaign dubbed as “Happy Children in Paradise” for this coming summer in a move to entice the family market segment from June 1-September 30 of this year. Children under 12 years of age will be covered by the summer campaign.
With the resumption of Asiana Airlines’ Pusan-Saipan direct service this month, MVA hopes that visitor arrivals from Korea, which used to be the second biggest market, would improve further and pull the Northern Marianas out of the teetering tourism economy.
The airline used to provide a Pusan-Saipan direct flight four times a week but dropped the service due to the regional crisis in Asia.
Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio, MVA Board Chair Dave M. Sablan and Managing Director Perry J. Tenorio will go to Pusan for the airline’s inaugural flight. Asiana is currently providing Seoul-Saipan direct flights six times a week.
Meanwhile, the MVA board approved yesterday a $116,000 budget for the production of promotional campaign materials, advertisements in magazines and newspapers for the Korean market.
Korea is the CNMI’s second biggest source of tourists. Before the termination of its air service, Korean Air used to ferry an average of 12,000 passengers a month.
Efforts to recover from the tourism decline have become more difficult with the termination of direct flights by Continental Airlines as the Governor’s Aviation Task Force has been trying very hard to entice air carriers to service the CNMI.
Since early this year, there has been a steady increase in the number of visitor from Korea primarily due to the improvement in the Korean economy.
MVA has been eyeing the honeymoon market in Korea, which is projected to increase continuously as some 400,000 couples are expected to get married this year.
