Record day for Falkland Islands tourism!

A new record was set for Falkland Islands tourism last week, with 4,053 visitors arriving on board cruise ships on Friday 6^th February, according to Jake Downing, General Manager of the Falkland Islands Tourist Board.

This outstripped the previous record day of 3,779 which took place on 4^th December 2007.

Three ships arrived in Stanley on 6^th February 2009: the Celebrity Infinity, Spirit of Adventure and Norwegian Sun. “Despite the large numbers, everything ran very smoothly and we’d like to thank the local residents for being so patient with the congestion in Stanley”, said Downing. “Visitor feedback was excellent, with a large proportion saying they’d consider coming back here again”.

Downing said visitor numbers so far for this season were up 26% overall on last year, the growth being down to the worldwide boom in cruising, which is currently the fastest growing tourism sector in the world, and more specifically due to the popularity of South America and Antarctica as cruising destinations.

But despite the current success, FITB isn’t resting on its laurels. “We’re all too aware of the slowing economy and how it might affect next season”, says Mr Downing. “So the team at FITB are working hard to develop new opportunities to market ourselves, and we have some exciting projects in the pipeline including a website overhaul and attendance at some important international exhibitions.”

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