Statistics received from the
Immigration Department continue to demonstrate that more visitors are making
Belize their preferred destination of choice.
Tourist arrivals at the Philip Goldson International Airport (PGIA), which
alone accounts for the majority of overnight arrivals, has marked record
highs for the months of March and April 2004 of 4.5 percent and 3.2 percent
respectively over the corresponding months of 2003. A total of 19,917
persons arrived in Belize in March 2004 and 14,635 arrived in April 2004.

The most recent report for total tourist arrivals (exclusive of cruise
passengers) which includes arrivals at all border points, shows the first
quarter of 2004 recording an increase of 13.4 percent over the same period,
January to March, 2003.  Belize was host to a total of 73,184 overnight
visitors for the period January to March 2004.

The cruise sector continues to show growth as 89,807 passengers visited
Belize’s shores in March 2004 representing an increase of 65.8% over March
2003.  The month of April also saw an increase as 72,260 cruise passengers
stopped in Belize, representing an increase of 55.7% over April of 2003.
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