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Cook Islands Tourism Council chair Liana Scott said: “The Council is devastated to hear reports of burglaries, home invasions and thefts. We know this can happen in any country but we are a small island nation and we should look out for each other.”
New executive members for the 2024-25 financial year will be elected at the Cook Islands Tourism Industry Council’s annual general meeting on Wednesday.
Chair Liana Scott said the meeting would be open to all tourism operators and finance members, and a range of issues would be discussed at the annual general meeting to be held at Ocean Escape Resort this week.
“The Cook Islands Tourism Industry Council Executive Committee is coming to the end of another busy term. The Annual General Meeting will provide all members with a financial update, a review of the year’s activities, success stories and outstanding issues,” said Scott, General Manager of Muri Beach Club Hotel.
Scott, who has served as chair since 2020, encouraged more owner/operators involved in the Cook Islands tourism industry to play a greater role in the annual work programme adopted by the council.
“Anyone involved in the tourism industry, whether it’s tour groups, restaurants, bungalows, hotels or motels, we welcome you to participate, or even better to be considered for nomination to the council and/or executive committee,” she said.
“We are the voice of the operators – I believe the lobbying, influencing and dialogue that the group engages in really positions the industry holistically, balancing the economic benefits with the social benefits.”
The AGM will thank the current executive members for their generous and long-term contributions in an “already very busy schedule” and elect those to serve.
“If you are unsure whether you are a paying member, or would like to become a member, please contact the Cook Islands Tourism Industry Council secretary@citourismindustrycouncil.comScott added.
The tourism industry is experiencing record numbers of visitors and is on track to hit a new high in total visitor numbers in the year to December this year.
In the 2023/24 financial year (i.e. 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024), New Zealand accounted for 68% of the market share of inbound tourists, followed by Australia at 20%. During this period, the Cook Islands had a total of 163,552 arrivals, with the last three months (April to June 2024) setting a new record for inbound tourist numbers.
In April this year, arrivals reached 13,968, in May 15,790 and in June 16,191. July data, which has been delayed but is expected to be released this week, is expected to break the 2019 record of 18,612 arrivals.
In the first half of 2024, from January to June, a record 75,435 tourists arrived in the Cook Islands.
Looking at the calendar year from January to December, 2019 had the highest total number of visitors at 171,550, followed by 2018 with 168,760 and 2017 with 161,362.
After travel restrictions and border closures caused by the coronavirus pandemic, visitor numbers rebounded to 113,551 in 2022, compared with 143,506 last year.
ANZ economists forecast earlier this year that inbound tourist demand would grow by 2% to 175,000, exceeding the number of arrivals in 2019. Based on arrivals in the first six months of this year, visitor growth is expected to reach 4%.
The Cook Islands was also ranked as the second most recommended destination in the world, with a 93% satisfaction rate, particularly among visitors from New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Canada and the United Kingdom.
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