Tourism soars in E. Asia, Pacific

Tourism soars in E. Asia, Pacific

MADRID (Reuter): International arrivals in East Asia and the
Pacific grew four times faster than the world average, reaching a
record-breaking 69 million in 1993, the Madrid-based World
Tourism Organization said.

While arrivals were up by 12.6 percent, tourist receipts
outpaced arrivals with a 15.2 percent rise to US$52.6 billion,
due in large part to intra-regional travel from Japan, Singapore
and Taiwan, a WTO report said.

The number of European tourists traveling to East Asia and the
Pacific region grew 6.4 percent last year.

"Arrivals from Europe -- 8.4 million last year -- are a result
of trendsetters choosing far-flung destinations that are
perceived as exotic and unspoilt, particularly the beach resorts
of Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia," WTO chief Enzo Paci said in
a statement.

The WTO forecasts that East Asia and the Pacific will continue
as the fastest-growing tourism region of the world with
international arrivals reaching 101 million by the year 2000.

The report "Tourism Market Trends: East Asia and Pacific" is
to be presented this week at WTO's regional meeting in Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia, where growth constraints will be studied.

"The biggest challenge for this region is how supply will keep
up with the tremendous demand. There is already awareness that
growth could be constrained by a lack of adequate airport
facilities, but other infrastructure, such as hotels and roads,
will also have to be built," Paci said.

The East Asia and Pacific region accounts for 14 percent of
the world's total international arrivals and 17 percent of
regional receipts.