SE Asia leads growth in arrivals of tourists

Collective international arrivals into Asia Pacific destinations grew by 4 per cent year-on-year during April 2012, according to preliminary data released by the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA).

Friday 10 August 2012, 02:32PM

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In percentage growth terms, this result was relatively constrained across the region compared with the robust expansion achieved during the first quarter of the year.

For the first four months of 2012, Asia Pacific recorded a collective gain of 7 per cent year-on-year.

Southeast Asia retained its position as the fastest growing sub-region in Asia Pacific with a 9 per cent increase in international arrivals during the month.

The smaller volume destinations, Cambodia (+24 per cent), Myanmar (+35 per cent) and the Philippines (+10 per cent) maintained strong growth rates in April, while Singapore (+9 per cent) and Thailand (+7 per cent) grew at a moderate pace.

Despite the slower growth levels for these latter two destinations, collectively they represent around 200,000 additional international visitor arrivals to the sub-region for the month, about half of the total gain for Southeast Asia.

Pata CEO Martin Craigs said, “Global economic conditions continue to be trying, but travel demand for Asia Pacific destinations continues generally positive.”