 |
| |
The PATA Quarterly Tourism Monitor has 37 destinations showing a year-on-year drop of 2.8 percent in international arrivals in the fourth quarter of 2008. The dip was not sufficient to drag the annual growth figure into negative territory. This latest PATA Tourism Monitor shows a dramatic downturn in international arrivals for Japan, Thailand and Sri Lanka, reflecting both the worsening global economic climate and regional/national issues. Japan was down 12.2 percent, Thailand dipped 28 percent and Sri Lanka fell 15.6 percent.
In contrast, some markets, including Mexico, Bhutan, Indonesia, New Caledonia and Papua New Guinea showed levels of growth year-on-year in the final three months of 2008 but, again, often based on relatively small numeric bases.
"It's clear that we have some way to go before we can see real, uninterrupted light at the end of the tunnel," says John Koldowski, PATA's SIC Director. "We know that travel trends are changing, and changing fast. This will have a varying degree of impact on destinations across the Asia Pacific and beyond. The belt tightening will undoubtedly continue and the battle for market-share is now in full swing."
For more details about the PATA Quarterly Travel Monitor, e-mail [email protected].