June tourist arrivals drop

Visitor arrivals slid two percent for the month of June as it totaled 38,855 compared to the same month of 1998.

According to the Marianas Visitors Authority, arrivals from Japan dropped five percent mainly due to the reduction in airline seat capacity to the CNMI.

Currently, there are 8,122 airline seats from Japan on a weekly basis, which is a 21 percent decline compared to the period of the previous year. This was a result of Northwest Airlines’ change of aircraft from B747 to DC10. At the same time, Continental Airlines terminated its direct flights from Osaka in April 1999.

Except for Taiwan, the remaining Northeast Asian markets recorded increases during the period. Arrivals from Korea, jumped 61 percent, as the CNMI’s the second biggest market showed sustained growth. The number of visitors from Hong Kong also showed a growth of 43 percent while arrivals from Taiwan and mainland China registered 55 and 68 percent, respectively.

Based on the projections of Japan Travel Bureau, the outlook for summer travel is expected to register a 1.7 increase for the first time in two years to reach 3.14 million despite the ongoing recession in that country.

The jump is attributed to the following factors:

• Slight improvement in unemployment rate;

• More positive attitude toward personal consumption;

• Reduction in income and residential taxes;

• Distribution of cash vouchers to stimulate local businesses; and

• Price reduction in travel costs, including package tour prices.

The Japan-Saipan Travel Association has said it was planning to ask Northwest Airlines to consider providing a Nagoya-Saipan direct service to increase visitor arrivals and help the ailing tourism economy.

Tour operators on the island are hoping to convince Northwest Airlines to provide at least two to three direct flights a week from Nagoya to Saipan, according to Iwao Sakai, president of JSTA.

Currently, Japan Airlines has been providing charter flights from Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka. Sakai said he expects visitor arrivals from Japan to increase this month because of the summer vacation in Japan. JAL is planning to provide more charter flights next month.

Earlier, JSTA asked JAL in a meeting with the airline officials last month to provide a Nagoya-Saipan direct service. Likewise, the Hotel Association of Northern Mariana Islands sent a letter to JAL hoping to convince the airline to begin a Nagoya-Saipan-Guam or Nagoya-Saipan flight at least three times a week to help boost visitor arrivals in the CNMI.