Solomon Islands Travel Situation Update
Interested in travelling to the Solomon Islands?? Need more information on the tourism and travel industry there?? The Solomon Islands Visitors Bureau has put together a travel situation update for 2007 on their website: www.visitsolomons.com.sb for the travelling public. Click here for more information.

Hotels Want Emergency Regulations Lifted to Boost Tourism
There has been a drop in the number of tourists travelling to Fiji since last December's coup, prompting a call for a relaxation of security measures imposed after the military coup. The Reserve Bank of Fiji's recent economic review revealed tourist arrivals fell by seven per cent in January, while the hotel occupancy rates averaged 31 per cent in March. Tourism sector leaders want the government to do what it takes to get foreign nations to lift their travel advisory notices, in an attempt to persuade tourists that Fiji is a safe destination. Click here for more information. (Source: Pacific Beat News 22/05/2007)

Australia’s Tourism Industry Worth $81 billion
Tourism is now an $81 billion industry in Australia, an increase of $4 billion according to the newly released ABS Tourism Satellite Account. The report also showed tourism exports have broken the $20 billion mark for the first time, reaching $20.5 billion in 2005-06, an increase of 4.6 percent. Employment in the tourism industry also grew by 5,900 jobs to 464,500 jobs, meaning tourism employs more than mining (130,000 jobs) and agriculture, forestry, and fishing (356,000 jobs). (Source: Tourism Australia Newsletter 18/05/2007)

south-pacific.travel membership update
south-pacific.travel welcomes 4 new private sector members:
1.  Rising Sun Company is a tour inbound operator from Tonga, specialized in  tour and travel consultation, conducting shore excursion for cruise ships, domestic and international air bookings, airport transfers and meet and greets. For more information, contact them directly via e-mail lalique@kalianet.to  
2.  Fulluck Trade & Tours is a Chinese and English speaking tour operator based in Suva, specializing in organizing tours and travel in Fiji and abroad, especially to the Chinese market. They can be contacted via fulluck@hotmail.com  
3.  Dave Clark Associates is a Graphic Design company based in Auckland, New Zealand and was established in 2001. Dave Clark Associates specialize in branding and design for print, packaging and new media. Their website www.daveclark.co.nz is your introduction to their work. Take some time to enjoy it and if you are interested in their services contact them on e-mail: info@daveclark.co.nz 
4.  Pan World Travel and Tours Corporation is an outbound and inbound tour operator from Malaysia, specializing in domestic and cruise tour packages, medical tour, anniversary  and honeymoon packages, worldwide air ticketing and hotel reservations. For more information, e-mail panworld.klg@gmail.com   
Contact our Membership Service Manager on rdrekeni@south-pacific.travel for more information on south-pacific.travel's Private Sector Membership Programme and the associated benefits.

Air Pacific Rationalise Flights
Air Pacific CEO John Campbell announced that the airline was rationalising some of its flights to meet that drop in demand from each centre. Flights to Auckland have been reduced from fourteen to eleven weekly, to Sydney from eleven to seven weekly, to Brisbane from seven to six weekly and to Japan from three to two weekly. On the Los Angeles route, the airline had planned to increase flights to five weekly, however this has been reconsidered and Air Pacific will only add the fifth flight in the absolute peak July/August period. (Source: Fiji Times 24/05/2007)

Air China Comes to Vanuatu’s Port Vila Airport
In a first for Vanuatu, an Air China Boeing 767 aircraft touched down at Port Vila’s Bauerfield Airport on the 28th March. Carrying the Vice Premier of the Chinese State Council, Mr Zeng Peiyan, on a goodwill visit, the aircraft is the largest type yet to service the country. Access to the country is largely provided in narrow body Boeing 737 jets out of ports in Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Noumea and the nearby Solomon Islands. According to Airports Vanuatu Limited CEO, Hendry Joewangeh, the airport design can accommodate widebody aircraft, but this is the first time that there has actually been widebody operations from Port Vila. He says there has been a general misconception with the tourism industry that high terrain around Bauerfield Airport precludes larger, longer haul aircraft from landing and taking off at the country’s premier airport. The Air China flight is a graphic demonstration of the capability of Bauerfield International Airport to accommodate wide body aircraft. The fact that it is an Asian airline is also significant he says. Airports Vanuatu Limited is continuing active dialogue with a number of operators regarding the possibility of widebody services operating from Asia to Port Vila, to provide more direct access to the growing number of visitors from Asia and Europe travelling via major Asian gateways. (Source: Airports Vanuatu Limited)

Fiji Surfing Association Appoint Committee Members
The Fiji Surfing Association has elected its executive committee members for the 2007 to 31st March 2008 season. John Philp was appointed the President and Thomas Coster the Vice President. Ravevi Konrote was appointed as the Secretary while Jonothan Saunders the Treasurer of the association. For more information on the Fiji Surfing Association, e-mail: ravesik@gmail.com  

Pacific Islands Air Service Agreement Close to Take Off
The regional agreement amongst the island countries of the Pacific to open up their skies to each other’s airlines is just one step short of coming into force. The Tongan  Minister for Transportation Hon. Paul Karalus says Vanuatu has become the fifth signatory but six nations have to ratify the Pacific Islands Air Services Agreement (PIASA) to make it a reality. Paul Karalus says the five countries that have ratified the agreement are Cook Islands, Nauru, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu. This agreement according to Karalus is a regional agreement that will provide for a multi-lateral basis for liberalising air services between the Forum Island Countries. He says PIASA's main objective is to establish a framework for the gradual integration of aviation services of the Forum members in a way that is fully supportive of sustainable development of the Forum island countries. For more information click here. (Source: Tonga Now News 22/05/2007)