Arrivals to of Saipan, Tinian and Rota registered 30,301 visitors last month compared to 35,259 in June 2008.
Overall, the fiscal year total to date is -8.25 percent fewer visitors than the same period in 2008.
After eight consecutive months of double digit declines, arrivals from Korea were a mere -2 percent off their July 2008 mark, registering 9,987 visitors.
Daytime flights from Seoul resumed in July, contributing to the recovery.
The Seoul flights, along with two additional weekly flights from Busan, have both resumed their normal flight schedule for the summer since being suspended in April 2009.
With the resumption of charter flights from Shanghai and Guangzhou, China saw a 42 percent increase in arrivals to 2,470. An overwhelming majority of Chinese visitors are traveling on a package tour to the CNMI for the purpose of pleasure.
Arrivals from the primary market of Japan were down for the fourth consecutive month, registering -25 percent compared to June 2008 with 14,277 visitors.
The drop is attributed to school and family trip cancellations due to the H1N1 flu virus, combined with the lagging economy which has hit overseas travel budgets very hard.
MVA is hoping for a boost in the Japanese market as a result of a series of new charter flights from Japan beginning in July..
After posting consecutive monthly increases since the beginning of the fiscal year, the Russian market was down for a second month at -36 percent, or 502 visitors.
According to MVA industry partners, the decline was largely due to prospective Russian travelers being under the impression that immigration federalization had already been implemented as originally planned on June 1, 2009, and that they would need to procure a U.S. visa to visit the Northern Marianas.
There were 41 percent fewer visitors from the Philippines (101) and 17 percent fewer visitors from the United States (908), despite military port calls by the USS Charlotte and USS Albuquerque. Other Areas were also down 47 percent to 229.
Taiwan had 31 additional visitors compared to last July, registering 81 total visitors for an increase of 62 percent. Guam arrivals were off only -1 percent to 1,746.
Other resort destinations in the Pacific are also feeling the sting of declining travel. According to Pacific Daily News, the NMI’s neighboring island of Guam had 37% fewer visitors in June 2009 compared to a year ago. The Hawaii Dept. of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism also reported last month that year-to-date 2009 arrivals by air were down 9.9% from a year ago, including a 33% decline in Japanese air arrivals in June 2009, the largest decrease in arrivals for the Japanese market since May 2003 (-36.6%).
