Tourism is now Fiji’s most important industry and the largest foreign exchange earner. The industry provides employment directly and indirectly to an estimated 40,000 people and contributes 17% of the total production of the economy.

Over the past few years, Fiji the Fiji tourism plant has been growing steadily with no end in sight. The tourism industry currently accounts for 24 percent of Gross Domestic Product and 27 per cent of employment. At present there are five major hotel projects underway at an estimated cost of $375 million Fiji dollars.(US$210 million). There are also several smaller projects on Fijian owned land in the Yasawa Islands that lie northwest of Nadi and in other areas in Fiji. There is an urgent need for additional accommodation.

Two rather unfortunate results from this shortage of accommodation on the main island have come to light within the last two to three years. Hotels have been able to raise their rates, which is not in keeping with the long term viability of the industry and the airlines are losing revenue due to a lack of accommodation. Air Pacific managing director John Campbell says that just recently Air Pacific lost 2000 passengers who had booked to Fiji but cancelled because they could not get rooms. "Air Pacific and Fiji is currently experiencing accommodation shortage in peaks," he says. "We have the seats - 1.35 million per annum - but we cannot fill current aircraft or add more flights due to room limitations in prime areas such as Nadi, Coral Coast and the islands.

That being said the Fiji Visitors Bureau has a sustained commitment to work towards a tourism goal of a billion dollar income by 2007 (US $562 million). Crows Nest Resort on the Coral Coast is a welcome new addition to the badly needed room inventory.

The Fiji National Provident Fund plans to invest over $257 million (US $ 154 million) in three hotel projects, This came about after the Attorney General approved changes to restrictions limiting its investment projects. The investments involve a $32.5 million loan to the Marriot Hotel in Momi Bay; equity participation and loans of $140 million for the Intercontinental Hotel and Golf Course and $85 million for the Four Seasons hotel.

According to WTTC's (World Travel and Tourism Council) statistics and predictions about world tourism, Kiribati and Fiji are likely to be the Pacific countries that will have the best annual growth for tourism employment between 2005 and 2014 with 6.8% and 6.5% growth per annum.

The tourism industry has been performing very well since the start of 2004 with the latest data showing visitor arrivals from January to August 2004 up to 326,060. This represents an 18.7% increase over the comparable period last year. New Zealand and Australia visitor arrivals for the first eight months of 2004 are up 45% and 23% respectively on the same eight months in 2003. Planned increased frequency of flights from key markets, as well as the introduction of new routes, some created by new or returning airlines to the Fiji markets such as Virgin Blue and Freedom Air, will stimulate increased tourism numbers. The 2005 budget estimates forecast total 2004 visitor arrivals to reach 445,000, increasing further to 472,000 in 2005.

Foreign earnings from tourism have been growing very quickly in the current positive environment of increasing visitors and spending. Gross earnings for 2003 were F$638.6 million, a 15.1% increase on 2002 with the average stay of visitors growing slightly from 8.6 days in 2002 to 8.7 days in 2003 according to Fiji Islands Bureau of Statistics (FIBS). The results to date for 2004 are showing a similar growth pattern. For the first quarter of 2004 earnings are provisionally estimated at F$153.3 million, an increase of 10% over the same period in 2003.

Guest nights increased by 24.6% in the second quarter of 2004 from 550,139 in the second quarter of 2003 to 685,322 while bed availability is up 5.8% over the same period. Total takings from accommodation, sales of food, liquor, telephone and other miscellaneous tourism charges increased by 14.9% compared to the same quarter in 2003 as illustrated on the graph below. Total takings for 2003 were F$312 million and with significant growth in the first 6 months of 2004, this result is expected to be surpassed comfortably.