Arrivals of non-resident passengers by air were up 6.84% for the first three quarters of the year. From January to October 2012, 242,648 more travelers came, for a total of 3,788,845 non-resident arrivals. Of this total, 209,465 were foreign non-resident arrivals. The increase is attributed to promotional campaigns in international markets that have led to an increase in flights from a range of source markets and agreements between tour operators, travel agencies and airlines. Total travel for the first nine months of the year was 4,190,524 or 6.45% more, and 253,857 additional passengers. Statistics, notwithstanding, reflect a lull in traffic in October, when there was only a 1.14% increase due to the Tropical Storm Sandy that resulted in flight cancellations. <\/p>\n
Punta Cana continues to be the airport of choice for tourists with 2,005,156 choosing to travel to this beach destination, or 61.20% of total arrivals. Las Americas (SDQ) is second with 20.96, next is Puerto Plata (POP) with 9.05, Cibao (4.33%), El Catey and La Romana (1.81% each). <\/p>\n
Research shows that 93% of tourists visiting came for leisure reasons, and 88.6% stayed at hotels. Local tourism is young, with 65% between the ages of 21 and 49.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Arrivals of non-resident passengers by air were up 6.84% for the first three quarters of the year. From January to October 2012, 242,648 more travelers came, for a total of 3,788,845 non-resident arrivals. Of this total, 209,465 were foreign non-resident arrivals. The increase is attributed to promotional campaigns in international markets that have led to … <\/p>\n