The number of tourists visiting Cambodia jumped 34 percent in 2000 to an all time high, due largely to improved political stability, and increased security and safety, a report said Thursday.
A total of 351,660 visitors flew into Phnom Penh and Siem Reap in 2000, compared with 262,907 in 1999, according to a report by Reuters.
A new “open skies” policy allowing direct flights to Siem Reap, home of the legendary Angkor temples, helped boost the number of tourists as well, Thong Khon, secretary of state for tourism, told Reuters.
Tourists spent approximately $156 million in Cambodia during 2000, compared with an estimated $126 million in 1999, Thong Khon said. US visitors topped the list of visitors in 2000, with China second and France third.
Political tension and the regional economic crisis caused tourism to flounder during the 1990s, but the industry has grown in recent years. Arrivals are expected to grow another 25 percent in 2001.
