The pace of cancellations peaked in the 10 days following the March 11, 2011, earthquake. Cancellations have been gradually returning to normal, but forward booking levels in April have been extremely low. Industry watchers anticipate that the Japan market will begin its long recovery at the end of April with Japan’s traditional Golden Week holidays.
Prior to the March 11 earthquake, February visitor arrivals to the CNMI were down 11 percent compared to February 2010. According to the MVA, arrivals to Saipan, Tinian and Rota registered 33,659 visitors last month compared to 37,850 in February 2010.
Arrivals from Japan fell 9 percent to 17,450 visitors due to a decline in air seats. In February 2010, there were five daily flights to the Northern Marianas from Japan. In February 2011, there were only two daily flights and three weekly flights each from Osaka and Nagoya. Nagoya flights re-launched on Feb. 2, with three flights per week increasing to daily service in March despite the Japan earthquake and tsunami impacts. The Nagoya flights were scheduled to continue through April 3.
Arrivals from the primary market of Korea posted another month of gain at 6 percent to 10,133, riding the country’s continued economic strength. However, Asiana Airlines decreased Busan-Saipan flight service from four to two times weekly beginning March 23 to adjust airlift during the shoulder season.
The secondary market of China saw 3,962 arrivals in February, a 37 percent decrease compared to the same month last year. While the lunar new year was celebrated in February again this year, there were fewer flights to the Northern Marianas from China for the holiday compared to last year.
Arrivals from Russia doubled in February, increasing 108 percent to 376 arrivals. The Russian Ruble is stronger than it was a year ago, and several media familiarization tours in late 2010 have helped spur interest in the travelling to the Northern Marianas.
Visitor arrivals were 20 percent lower from Guam (987) due to a substantial reduction in air seats. For most of February, the CNMI had only one flight per day from Guam, jet services by Continental Airlines providing 155 seats. This is opposed to the normal schedule of five or six flights per day with a total of 230-276 seats. This resulted in an 18 percent reduction in air seats from Guam in Feb 2011 compared to Feb 2010.
Visitor arrivals were also lower from the United States (520), the Philippines (41), and Other Areas (144), while arrivals from Taiwan increased (23).
