Cambodian outbound tourists increase 20 pct in 8 months

The number of Cambodian outbound travelers increased by 20 percent to 519,800 in the first eight months of this year, up from 431,920 in the same period last year, according to the statistics of the Ministry of Tourism on Friday.

Ho Vandy, co-chair of the Government-Private Working Group on Tourism Policy, said that most Cambodian tourists traveled to ASEAN countries thanks to visa exemption agreements and direct flight connections.

Among ASEAN member states, they preferred Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia, said Ho Vandy, who is also president of World Express Tour and Travel Company.

In addition, some traveled to China including Shanghai, Kuming, Hong Kong, Macau for leisure or business purposes.

He attributed the rise of Cambodian outbound travelers to rising living standard of the Cambodian people due to growing economy.

Cambodia has the population of 14.5 million. By the end of 2011, Cambodian per capita GDP (Gross Domestic Product) was 911 US dollars, according to a report of the finance ministry. However, there is a wide income gap between the rich and the poor.

Sourced: globaltimes