Tourism Authority of Kiribati: TAK Releases 2024 First Quarter Tourism Review
Kiribati – 2 July 2024 – The Tourism Authority of Kiribati has published its Quarter 1 Tourism Industry Review for 2024, revealing exciting growth in the sector. The report shows a 100% increase in international arrivals when compared to the same period in 2019, before the pandemic.
In the first quarter of 2024, the USA became the top source market for Kiribati, surpassing Pacific Islanders who had been the top source market since Q1 2023. This quarter, 25.9% of arrivals to Kiribati were from the USA. Most of these American visitors travelled to Kiritimati for leisure, specifically for fly fishing holidays.
In the first quarter of 2024, Kiribati continued to welcome cruise passengers, although only one cruise ship visited. As a result, the number of cruise passengers was 65% lower than in 2023.
The report also highlights a boost in domestic air travel and a decrease in domestic marine travel. It also captured the number of visitors to the Museum.
Additionally, the report notes improvements in the tourism supply. Employment in the tourism sector has increased by 97%, showing that more jobs are being created. The reports covered a detailed increase in the other tourism supply.
TAK would like to express its appreciation to Air Kiribati Ltd, the Marine Guard Division, the Immigration Department, Te Umwanibong Cultural Museum, the Kiribati Customs Authority, the Shipping Agencies of Kiribati (SAOK), and local Tourism operators who have been instrumental in gathering and contributing relevant data and insights, making this report a comprehensive and robust assessment of the tourism sector in Kiribati.
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About Tourism Authority of Kiribati
Tourism Authority of Kiribati(TAK) was established on 10 June 2019 under the aegis of the Ministry of Information, Communication, Transport and Tourism Development (MICTTD) and is governed by the Kiribati Tourism Act 2018.
TAK is mandated by the Government of Kiribati (GoK) to lead the country’s tourism development and promotional programme. These include tourism investment promotion, product development, licensing and standards regulation, training and development, research and statistics and tourism marketing and promotions.
Through the Kiribati 20 years vision (KV20), GoK recognizes the potential contribution of tourism towards stimulating economic development, providing employment, income generation as well as supporting the retention of cultural traditions, sustainable management of national environmental assets and wider contribution towards social-economic benefits.
The objectives therefore of TAK are, among others, to promote the sustainable growth of tourism, increase its economic contribution and improve standards of living and well-being.
TAK has offices in Betio, South Tarawa and London in Kiritimati.