UEFA Football Championship, were able to maintain positive growth, with the first two increasing by 2%,
while Austria experienced a 6% boost in arrivals.
Central and Eastern Europe bucked the trend with an increase of 3% in arrivals in 2008. Still, there was wide
variation from one destination to another, with various destinations, including Bulgaria, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan,
Georgia and Armenia, recording double-digit increases. Southern and Mediterranean Europe recorded only
slight increases in arrivals (+0.8%) with destinations such as Italy and Spain registering declines in arrivals.
One bright spot in the region was Turkey which, with its attractive exchange rate and relaxed visa regime,
achieved an increase of 12% in arrivals over 2007.
Asia and the Pacific experienced a significant slowdown in the growth pace of international tourist arrivals in
2008. The deceleration from +9.6% in 2007 to +1.2% in 2008 can be attributed principally to a rise in the
price of tourism caused by increases in aviation fuel prices during the first half of the year. Growth in receipts
in Asia outpaced that of arrivals. Year-on-year growth in receipts for the region was 2.7%, to US$ 206 billion,
with South Asia (+6%) reporting the highest growth rate in real terms.
North-East Asia experienced a significant drop in arrivals growth, from 10% in 2007 to -0.1% in 2008. The
dynamo for tourism in the region, China, experienced a 3% decrease in arrivals, which may be attributed to
visitors’ fear of congestion, higher prices and security concerns brought on by the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Playing host to the Olympics did, however, have a positive effect on China’s tourism receipts, which grew by
almost 10% (in US dollar terms). Arrivals in Japan stagnated in 2008, which can be explained in part by the
Japanese yen’s appreciation over the course of 2008. Destinations such as the Republic of Korea (+7%) and
Taiwan (pr. of China) (+3%) bucked the trend and recorded above-average growth.
South-East Asia and South Asia were the strongest performing subregions of Asia and the Pacific, growing
at 3% and 2% in 2008. In South-East Asia, countries like Indonesia (+13%), Cambodia (+7%) and Malaysia
(+5%) grew at above-average rates. Arrivals in India, the dominant destination in South Asia, grew 6%.
Oceania reported the weakest arrivals figures in the region (-1%). The high costs of air travel – especially
significant for distant destinations – coupled with the global economic environment and high exchange rates
have negatively impacted international travel to Australia (-1%) and New Zealand (-0.3%). However, some
of the Pacific Islands, such as Fiji (+8%), reported encouraging results in 2008.
Regional
Results
Major destinations International Tourist Arrivals International Tourism Receipts
Series
1
(1000) Change (%) Share (%) (US$ million) Share (%)
2006 2007 2008* 07/06 08*/07 2008* 2006 2007 2008* 2008*
Asia and the Pacific 165,989 181,984 184,104 9.6 1.2 100 157,067 186,789 206,022 100
Australia VF 5,532 5,644 5,586 2.0 -1.0 3.0 17,840 22,298 24,660 12.0
Cambodia TF 1,591 1,873 2,001 17.7 6.8 1.1 963 1,135 1,221 0.6
China TF 49,913 54,720 53,049 9.6 -3.1 28.8 33,949 37,233 40,843 19.8
Fiji TF 549 540 585 -1.6 8.4 0.3 480 497 568 0.3
Guam TF 1,212 1,225 1,142 1.1 -6.8 0.6 .. .. .. ..
Hong Kong (China) TF 15,822 17,154 17,320 8.4 1.0 9.4 11,638 13,754 15,300 7.4
India TF 4,447 5,082 5,367 14.3 5.6 2.9 8,634 10,729 11,832 5.7
Indonesia TF 4,871 5,506 6,234 13.0 13.2 3.4 4,448 5,346 7,375 3.6
Iran TF 2,735 2,172 .. -20.6 .. .. 1,452 1,486 .. ..
Japan VF 7,334 8,347 8,351 13.8 0.0 4.5 8,469 9,334 10,821 5.3
Korea. Republic of VF 6,155 6,448 6,891 4.8 6.9 3.7 5,788 6,138 9,078 4.4
Lao P.D.R. TF 842 1,142 1,295 35.6 13.4 0.7 173 233 276 0.1
Macao (China) TF 10,683 12,942 10,605 21.2 .. 5.8 9,829 13,612 13,382 6.5
Malaysia TF 17,547 20,973 22,052 19.5 5.1 12.0 10,424 14,047 15,277 7.4
Maldives TF 602 676 683 12.3 1.1 0.4 512 602 636 0.3
New Zealand VF 2,422 2,466 2,459 1.8 -0.3 1.3 4,738 5,400 4,912 2.4
Nepal TF 384 527 500 37.2 -5.0 0.3 128 198 336 0.1
Pakistan TF 898 840 823 -6.6 -2.0 0.5 255 276 245 0.1
Philippines TF 2,843 3,092 3,139 8.7 1.5 1.7 3,501 4,931 4,388 2.1
Singapore TF 7,588 7,957 7,778 4.9 -2.2 4.2 7,535 9,162 10,575 5.1
Sri Lanka TF 560 494 438 -11.7 -11.2 0.3 410 385 342 0.2
Taiwan (pr. of China)VF 3,520 3,716 3,845 5.6 3.5 2.1 5,136 5,213 5,937 2.9
Thailand TF 13,822 14,464 14,584 4.6 0.8 7.9 13,401 16,669 17,651 8.6
Vietnam VF 3,584 4,229 4,236 18.0 0.2 2.3 3,200 3,477 3,926 1.9
Source: World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) © (Data as collected by UNWTO, 2009)
1
See note on page 6.
Asia and the Pacific – rising cost of travel dampens growth
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I