Strong 2010 tourism numbers in Asia: PATA

The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) has hailed preliminary figures reporting record growth of tourist arrivals into the Asia-Pacific region.

Agence France-Presse reported on Tuesday the region took in an 11 per cent increase in arrivals last year, according to PATA’s preliminary figures, with 2011 expected to continue the trend."Asia will receive international arrivals at close to double that of the world average growth rates," PATA Deputy CEO John Koldowski told the agency.

"It's Asians travelling to Asia, that's the key to all these numbers and the big shift we are seeing globally in the tourism market.”South Asia reported a 14 per cent increase in numbers from 2009, with India the most popular destination, with 5.6 million foreign inbound visits last year – a nine per cent increase.

More than 70 million people travelled to Southeast Asia, up by 12 per cent on 2009.PATA said arrivals from Europe increased by 11 per cent to 24 million, while North American tourists rose up 10 per cent to 13 million.

"For developing nations, which make up a large portion of Asia-Pacific, short vacations to neighbouring countries will continue to be most popular,” American Express Business Travel advisory services director Carl Jones told the agency.“As nations grow, so does their exposure and disposable income, leading to trips further afield.”

In addition to arrival figures, PATA reported around 46 million Chinese and more than four million Indians travelled abroad last year.Travel industry analyst PhoCusWright expects the region’s market to reach $212 billion this year, or a five per cent increase from 2010.

Source = etravelblackboardasia