THE first quarter of the year remains the most challenging period for Fiji’s tourism sector, said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Tourism, Viliame Gavoka.
Speaking at a press conference in Suva last week to introduce Tourism Fiji’s new chairperson Ilisapeci Matatolu and chief executive officer Dr Paresh Pant, Mr Gavoka said Fiji’s tourism performance historically dips in the early months of each year before recovering later in the year.
“The first quarter of any year is always a challenge for Fiji,” Mr Gavoka said.
“That’s why you develop special markets and events and look at technical products that can motivate travel during a very difficult time.”
Mr Gavoka said this year was no different, with Fiji experiencing a slow start to 2025, but the industry has since rebounded.
According to the Fiji Bureau of Statistics, visitor arrivals in February 2025 totalled 49,483, representing a 9.6 percent drop compared to February 2024 and a 30.1 percent decline from January 2025.
By August 2025, cumulative visitor arrivals had rebounded slightly, up 0.4 percent year-on-year to 642,810 visitors, following consecutive months of decline.
Speaking publicly for the first time in his role as Tourism Fiji chief executive officer, Dr Paresh Pant said the agency had identified the causes behind the earlier dip and is already working with partners to strengthen performance in 2026.
“I’m starting discussions next week with our key partners,” Dr Pant said.
“This will give us enough lead time to put something in the market that hopefully prevents that sort of situation.”
