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MVA eyes over 600K visitors in FY05
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Posted on Dec 13 2004
The Marianas Visitors Authority targets to bring in 15 percent more tourists to the islands in fiscal year 2005.
From Oct. 1, 2004 through Sept. 30, 2005, MVA projects to draw at least 611,486 visitors, or 80,551 more than the actual arrivals in FY 2004.
MVA managing director Vicky I. Benavente said the agency will be more aggressive in promoting the CNMI as a tourist destination, particularly in Korea.
The market posted low arrivals in the previous year for several reasons—mainly the availability of less expensive destinations, the sluggish Korean economy, and MVA’s own need to upgrade its marketing strategy, Benavente said.
“Maintaining the cleanliness and safety of our islands is also very important because that’s what attracts people to our destination. We have to keep our ocean clean and protect Managaha [Island],” she added.
MVA wants arrivals from Japan to increase by 9 percent, or from 384,531 last year to 420,000 this year. Japanese visitors account for 68.7 percent of the total projected arrivals.
MVA also hopes to increase arrivals from Korea by 12.7 percent or 8,324 visitors; China by 88 percent or 25,762 visitors; Hong Kong by 140 percent or 2,799 visitors; Taiwan by 867 percent or 4,309 visitors; Philippines by 19 percent or 974 visitors; USA by 4 percent or 606 visitors; Guam by 10 percent or 1,916 visitors; and other markets by 6 percent or 392 visitors.
Visitor arrivals totaled 530,936 in fiscal year 2005, surpassing the half-million mark for the first time in five years.
The 500,000 threshold was last hit in 2000, when the CNMI registered 526,561 tourists.
The tourism industry started experiencing a downturn in 2001 as a result of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States. Visitor arrivals reached only 497,696 in that year.
The impact of the 9/11 events was even more felt in 2002, when the CNMI received only 424,932 visitors.
In 2003, the industry’s recovery efforts were stunted by the SARS epidemic and the outbreak of the Iraq war. The Northern Marianas welcomed 458,444 visitors in that year.
