Cambodian authorities are setting an ambitious target of over 7 million international tourists for 2025, following steady tourist traffic in 2024.
According to Huot Hak, the Minister of Tourism, its goals are “to attract up to 7.2 million or 7.5 million foreign tourists in 2025”.
This leverages the success seen in 2024, when the nation saw 6.7 million tourists, an annual increase of nearly 23 percent, beating even 2019 levels by 1.4 percent, according to the Khmer Times.
In order to achieve the new goal, the tourism ministry is developing an action plan and monitoring and assessing tourist arrivals.
This would encompass increasing the attractiveness of the country to the Muslim tourism market and eliminating the low season (April to September) to have steady tourism traffic year-long.
Part of the move to increase attractiveness was the recent reduction in tourist e-Visa prices – down to $30 from $36. Regular visa prices were also cut to $35 from $42.
According to tourism data published by NagaWorld operator NagaCorp, during the first 11 months of 2024, total international tourist arrivals reached 6 million, up by 20 percent yearly. Visitors from ASEAN nations increased to nearly 3.8 million, up by 18.2 percent yearly.
Thailand was the leading market, making up 31.9 percent , followed by Vietnam – at 20.1 percent, China – at 12.8 percent, and Laos – at 5.1 percent.
Thailand alone contributed 1.91 million visitors, while Vietnam amounted to 1.2 million. But Chinese visitation during the 11-month period saw a heady 54.5 percent yearly increase, to nearly 770,000.
For Phnom Penh, where NagaWorld is located, arrivals via the international airport increased by 28.7 percent yearly, to 1.58 million visitors between January and December 1st – 83.7 percent of the value registered in 2019
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