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Arrivals up 2104% in February
Highest monthly arrivals since COVID pandemic
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Posted on Apr 05 2022
According to the Marianas Visitors Authority, arrivals to the islands of Saipan, Tinian and Rota grew 2,104% to 4,188 visitors in February 2022, compared to 190 visitors received in February 2021.
While the figure is the highest monthly arrivals since the COVID-19 pandemic, it is still a significant decrease of 89% from 38,049 received in February 2019, indicating a continued challenging road ahead for the recovery of the Marianas tourism economy.
A majority of visitors in February arrived under a travel bubble agreement with South Korea, the Marianas’ largest source market prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, with 2,821 visitors arriving. This compares to February 2021, when the Marianas received only two visitors from South Korea. Following a decline in demand from South Korea in December and early January due to the omicron variant and other factors, weekly flights doubled from 12 weekly flights in January to 24 weekly flights in February. Air Busan also started flying to the Marianas for the first time in January. Arrivals are anticipated to continue to increase with the expansion of flight service over the coming months. As of March 21, all inbound passengers to Korea are no longer required to quarantine, which is expected to further drive travel demand.
The Marianas also received 842 visitors from the United States, 382 visitors from Guam, and a combined 143 additional visitors from all other destinations in February. (PR)
