CNMI to see entry of more Korean tourists

Counting on Asiana Airlines’ commitment to the CNMI, the Marianas Visitors Authority is expecting to see an increased number of Koreans visiting the Northern Marianas for the rest of the year.

MVA Managing Director Perry John Tenorio said the Korean inbound market will continue to grow after posting a whopping 23 percent increase last year.

“We can expect visitor arrivals from Korea to climb for the remainder of the year. One of the major sources for the present and the future growth is Asiana’s commitment to provide direct flight services from Seoul to Saipan,” Mr. Tenorio said.

Visitors from Korea grew despite the cancellation of Asiana’s direct service from Pusan to Saipan. However, in place of the terminated route, the airline added three flights from Seoul, bringing the total weekly flights of Asiana to Saipan to 10.

“Although Japan is still our biggest market, our second largest market, Korea, has been displaying continued growth through the support of Asiana Airlines,” the MVA managing director further said.

Figures furnished by the MVA showed that visitor arrivals from Korea increased from 20,700 tourists in the first four months of fiscal year 2000 to 25,506 in fiscal year 2001, representing a 23 percent hike. The busiest months proved to be the summer months of July and August, with visitor arrivals from Korea totaling 7,807 and 7,504, respectively.

However, Japanese visitor arrivals continued to lord it over with a total of 126,770 in 2001. However, it represents a one percent decline in visitor arrivals from Japan, which was 127,451 last fiscal year.

Another bright spot for the CNMI tourism industry is the expected return of Korean Air service to the islands. Mr. Tenorio revealed that the Korean flag carrier is negotiating with Korea’s Ministry of Construction and Transportation to allow Korean Air to expand its route to the Marianas.

Mr. Tenorio anticipates that Korean Air would resume direct flights to the region some time in November 2001.

MVA is optimistic the Northern Marianas’ travel sector will perform better this year compared to 2000, counting on the survey conducted by the Japan Travel Bureau that indicates a favorable holiday sequence in 2001.

There are eight three-day breaks for the year, compared with 2000’s six. Five of these weekends fall on either the second and fourth Saturdays of the month, or during school break.

MVA is confident these breaks will encourage travel demands by the family market.

Also, the Commonwealth’s tourism industry is expected to pump up government revenues by at least $200 million in five years due to the anticipated success of the programs that will be carried out by the Strategic Economic Development Council.