Fiji has reported its highest-ever visitor arrivals for the month of September, totaling 92,591, according to provisional data from the Fiji Bureau of Statistics. This represents a 2.4 percent increase compared to September 2023 and is 13.8 percent higher than pre-pandemic levels recorded in September 2019.
Nevertheless, visitor numbers experienced a slight decline from August 2024, which saw 94,787 arrivals. Australia remained the leading source of visitors, contributing nearly half of all arrivals (47.8%) with 44,254 tourists. New Zealand followed as the second-largest source with 22,625 visitors (24.4%), and the United States added 7,923 visitors (8.6%). Other countries, including China, Continental Europe, Canada, and the UK, collectively accounted for 8.1% of the total visitors to Fiji.
The data indicates that 81.6 percent of tourists came for holiday purposes, while eight percent visited friends or relatives. Business travel represented only two percent, and the remaining 8.4 percent were in Fiji for various other reasons.
Demographic analysis revealed that the majority of visitors (64.2%) were between the ages of 25 and 64. Children under 14 represented 16.4 percent, while those aged 65 and older made up 10.3 percent. The youth group, aged 15-24, comprised 9.1 percent of the arrivals. Notably, more women than men traveled in specific age groups, particularly those aged 20-24 and 25-29.
In terms of resident departures, 16,122 Fijian residents left the country in September. A significant majority, 92.2 percent, were departing for short-term stays of less than three months, primarily for holiday reasons (54.1%) or to visit friends and relatives (35%). A smaller portion, 5 percent, left for long-term absences of one year or more, citing employment, education, and emigration as their primary motivations.