Mauritius tourist arrivals up 22% in April

Reuters - Mauritius said visitor arrivals rose by 22 percent in April due to a stronger-than-expected recovery from the global economic slowdown.

Tourism typically generates about 10 percent of gross domestic product for Mauritius’ $10 billion economy. European tourists account for some two-thirds of arrivals.

“During the month of April 2011, some 79,173 tourists visited Mauritius as compared to 64,797 in April 2010, that is, an increase of 22.2 percent,” the government said in a statement seen by Reuters on Monday.

The French market, one of the most important, grew by 14.3 percent while the Swiss market expanded by 67.5 percent and the UK market increased by 14 percent.

Mauritius’ eastern markets also registered strong growth, with tourist numbers from China and India up 39.1 percent and 7.5 percent respectively.

The global financial crisis hit Mauritius’ tourism sector hard and underscored the industry’s dependence on its European source markets, sparking efforts to lure more visitors from Asia and the Middle East.

Tourist arrivals to the Indian Ocean island rose 7.3 percent in 2010 to a record 934,827 while tourism revenues increased by 10.5 percent to 39.45 billion rupees.