Peceli Naviticoko 
Fiji’s 1.6 million visitor arrivals last year include Fijians living overseas returning for visits, clarifies Tourism Minister Viliame Gavoka.
This figure includes various categories, such as Visiting Friends and Relatives, and covers both air and cruise ship arrivals.
Gavoka believes Fiji is on track as a tourist destination for 2025.
“For the arrival by air, there were about 981,000 last year. If you add the arrival by boat, cruise, that’s 81,000. So we are combining the two and giving us the 1.6 million that we are reporting. Other countries in the world also include cruise tourists in the equation. So Fiji is also going that way. We’ll change that to include the cruise arrivals.”
Gavoka adds that Fijian visitors and cruise tourists contribute to the economy, spending time with families and sometimes staying in hotels.
“Our people who leave overseas or come back to Fiji for the usual visit back home, we count them as tourists. Because one of the reasons is that their spending is quite phenomenal.”
Despite the 2024 tourism milestone, the Northern Division receives only four percent of total arrivals annually, an issue being addressed.
Gavoka emphasizes that continued collaboration with the private sector, stakeholders, and landowners will ensure the tourism sector’s continued success.
