Visitor Arrivals to Solomon Islands Jump 28%

International visitor arrivals to the Solomon Islands in September 2015 jumped by 28% y-o-y.

Official government figures released this week show a total of 2,211 international travellers visited the Solomon Islands in September, eclipsing the 1,730 recorded in the same period in 2014.

The largest gains in visitor arrivals were recorded from Australia, New Zealand and Fiji.

Australian visitors topped the list with 1,029 visitors for the month, 46% of all arrivals.

And for the first time New Zealand visitor arrivals overtook Fiji, Kiwi numbers increasing 49% from 107 in September 2014 to 160 for the same period in 2015.

The Solomon Islands also recorded an increase in arrivals from Fiji (110%), Papua New Guinea (37%) and the United States (50%.

“2014 was very much a case of our needing to build a platform but despite doing this and doing it well, last year was tough for us due to a number of factors which had impact on our visitation numbers,” said Mr Tuamoto, Solomon Islands Visitors Bureau CEO. “Our efforts this year seem to paying off and we are definitely back on track for a much stronger year this time around. Christmas has certainly come early for us this year.”