Growing Value in Industry to Continue: Koya
As we see our economy recovering, our focus will continue to remain on growing the value of the industry and propagating its benefits across the entire tourism ecosystem.
Minister for Commerce, Trade, Tourism and Transport, Faiyaz Koya highlighted this at the opening of the Fijian Tourism Expo 2022 at the Sheraton Fiji Golf and Beach Resort in Denarau, Nadi on Wednesday.
Mr Koya said since the reopening of Fiji’s borders, there was a healthy growth in the number of international tourists coming in from countries like Australia, the United States of America including New Zealand.
“Since re-opening our borders in December 2021, we’ve seen a steady and healthy growth in visitor numbers from Australia, the United States and most recently New Zealand, the vast majority of which have flown to Fiji on our national carrier, Fiji Airways,” said Mr Koya.
“I understand that last month, Fiji averaged occupancy that often exceeded our 2019 peak across thirty
key hotels.
“Our average daily room rate and our revenue per available room matched 2019 pre-pandemic figures, very good signs as we continue to build back.
“Our focus has, and will always be, ‘high-value, low-impact’ tourism that generates more positive impact in our communities and the Fijian economy.”
Mr Koya added that there was a vision
for tourists to come to Fiji and experience what the country had to offer.
“What we want is for visitors to come and experience our country’s beautiful natural assets, and leave with a better understanding of how integral they are to our people,” he added.