Visitor arrivals up by 1.9 percent

Overall visitor arrivals to this country up to February 2012 are up, compared to the corresponding period in 2011. However, there has been a reduction in same day visitors and in visitors arriving on cruise ships.{{more}}

Minister of Tourism, Sport and Culture Cecil McKie said, at a press conference on May 3, that overall, figures for February 2012 are up 1.9 per cent.

There was a 10.4 per cent increase in stay over visitors during the period and an 8.4 per cent increase in visitors arriving by air.

Figures for the number of visitors arriving on yachts were also up 5.7 percent – 6,279 for February 2012 compared to 5,942 in 2011, but the number of cruise visitors decreased slightly by 2.5 percent (14,510 in 2012 compared to 14,882 in 2011) and there was a 21.2 percent drop (328 in 2012 and 416 in 2011) in the figures for same day visitors.

This, according to McKie, was the third consecutive month that there was an increase in visitor arrivals to this country, beginning in December 2011.

And, according to the tourism minister, the trend could continue into the months of March and April.

“I have no doubt that March 2012 would also show an improvement over 2011, given our hosting of the three One Day Internationals and the Gospel Fest, all of those should combine to show improvements in March and April,” he said.

According to the minister, there have also been slight increases in the numbers of visitors coming from the United States and the United Kingdom, and from around the region. However, there was a slight reduction in the number of visitors coming from Canada. (DD)