International arrivals to Asia Pacific on the rise in 2015, says PATA

Preliminary data collected by the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) for 36 Asia Pacific destinations indicate that the number of international arrivals to the region grew by 5.2% in 2015 to 47m arrivals. There were variations within the region’s growth figures, with Northeast Asia reporting 3.5% growth and Southeast Asia 6.7%. The highest figure reported was 8.2% for South Asia’s growth in arrivals. Around 80% of all international group arrivals in the region came from Asian destinations. Asian visitors made up over 70% of the incremental increase in absolute numbers between 2014 and 2015. Overall, 29 of the 36 destinations for which preliminary data is available reported positive growth with 10 destinations recording double-digit growth. PATA expects the Asia Pacific destinations to collectively continue with the overall growth momentum and pass 550m international arrivals in 2016 before progressing towards 600m in 2018. Mario Hardy, CEO of PATA, said: “It is heartening to see that the momentum of the Asia Pacific tourism sector will continue until at least the end of this decade and that it continues to play a significant role as both a receiver and generator of international visitors. The region’s identity as the engine of growth in international tourism is well justified.”