PATA RELEASES 2000 ANNUAL STATISTICAL REPORT

The Pacific Asia Travel Association has released the PATA 2000 Annual Statistical Report, the most authoritative barometer for travel and tourism performance in the Pacific Asia region.

The report shows that arrivals to the whole region rose seven percent over 1999 to just over 178 million. Within Pacific Asia, the Asian sub-region performed best with arrivals to South Asia surging 17.2 percent and Northeast Asia 15.2 percent. Perhaps the most notable increase within Asia came from Malaysia where arrival figures soared 30 percent to make that country the largest volume destination within the Asian sub-region.

While arrivals to Asia as a whole grew 12.5 percent, The Pacific increased by 5.6 percent and The Americas by 3.9 percent – driven by an extra 2.4 million visitors to the United States.

The 180-page report also shows detailed arrival statistics for 2000 compared to 1999 for more than 40 nations in the region from American Samoa and Australia to Vanuatu and Vietnam. Much of the report compares outbound travel for over 100 countries in Pacific Asia over the last five years, a period which saw travellers from China (PRC) double to 10 million.

The PATA 2000 Annual Statistical Report also contains miscellaneous tables with a smorgasbord of useful information such as average length of stay, visitor expenditure, currency exchange rates, average hotel room occupancy rates, national tourist organisation budgets and international air frequency and capacity.

PATA’s Strategic Information Centre Managing Director, Mr. John Koldowski said: "The report provides a useful reference point for the region as a whole and for individual destinations as they position themselves to take advantage of various source markets. In these turbulent times it also serves as a useful benchmark against which we can measure the speed of recovery for those markets and destinations most affected by the devastating events of September 11."

The PATA 2000 Annual Statistical Report costs US$250 to PATA Members and US$350 for PATA chapter members and non-members. To order a copy e-mail publications@pata.th.com.