Fiji’s tourism sector delivered stronger receipts in 2025, with earnings rising 10.9 per cent to $2,813.8 million, the Reserve Bank of Fiji (RBF) said in its March-end economic review released this week. The central bank attributed the gain to higher spending by visitors from key markets — notably Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Continental Europe — even as the average length of stay fell.
The RBF said stronger average daily spending more than offset the decline in nights per visitor, lifting overall tourism receipts. Visiting-friends-and-relatives travel surged, expanding 53.2 per cent, while earnings from Asia and Pacific Island countries edged lower. The bank warned, however, that international headwinds were increasing: a weakening in global growth late in February and the escalating conflict in the Middle East had disrupted flight routes and pushed up insurance and shipping costs, contributing to broader cost pressures.
Early-year visitor flows showed modest growth. Fiji received 125,212 visitors in the first two months of this year — 4.1 per cent higher than the same period in 2025, or an additional 4,935 arrivals, according to the RBF. The bank credited the result mainly to higher arrivals from Australia, Canada, China, the United States and the United Kingdom, while arrivals from Pacific Island countries, Continental Europe and Japan were lower.
Provisional figures from the Fiji Bureau of Statistics (FBoS) put February’s arrivals at 54,219 — up 9.6 per cent year-on-year but down 23.6 per cent from January’s 70,993 arrivals. Australia remained the dominant source market in February, supplying 35.2 per cent of arrivals with 19,094 visitors. New Zealand accounted for 8,511 visitors, the United States 7,757, China 3,679, Continental Europe 2,383, Canada 1,937 and the United Kingdom 1,152.
The mixed signals underline the fragility of the tourism recovery. “With global travel becoming more expensive and geopolitical risks still unfolding, this early-year momentum remains fragile as travellers in key markets grow more cautious,” the RBF said. Rising costs and flight disruptions could blunt headline gains in receipts if they weigh on visitor numbers or prompt shorter stays and lower discretionary spending.
The uptick in earnings comes as Fiji seeks to capitalise on renewed investor interest in its tourism product. Developments over the past year — including high-end resort projects and private-sector trade initiatives — have signalled growing confidence in Fiji’s tourism prospects and helped underpin stronger spending per visitor. Still, policymakers and industry leaders will be watching whether higher per-day spending is sustainable if global inflationary pressures and geopolitical uncertainty persist.
Tourism remains central to Fiji’s economic recovery and foreign exchange earnings after the severe pandemic shock. The RBF’s latest figures provide a welcome boost for 2025 receipts but also serve as a caution that the sector’s near-term outlook depends heavily on an unpredictable international environment and the cost of travel.
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