Kampot province greeted the most guests, with the provincial tourism department reporting that nearly 390,000 arrivals opted to welcome the New Year there. Department of Kampot Tourism
The recent New Year’s Eve celebrations saw record numbers of visitors to some of the Kingdom’s most popular tourist destinations, with the exception of Siem Reap province, which experienced a 10 per cent decline on the 2022-23 event.
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Kampot province greeted the most guests, with the provincial tourism department reporting that nearly 390,000 arrivals opted to welcome the New Year there.
In second place was Preah Sihanouk province, with 349,000 tourists recorded. It was followed by Siem Reap, with 304,064 guests enjoying the countdown in the province, home to the Kingdom’s renowned Angkor Archaeological Park.
The Battambang department of tourism reported around 263,000 guests, with Kampong Cham logging about 120,000 and Kep’s seaside location drawing slightly over 100,000 visitors.
Each of the departments confirmed that the figures included both domestic and international tourists.
Kampot provincial tourism department director Soy Sinol said on January 1 that the province had recorded 386,488 tourists, including about 1,500 international guests. Visiting residents of the province were not included in the figure, he noted.
The number represented an increase of about 10 per cent on the previous celebrations.
“The reason we welcomed so many guests may be due to our proximity to Phnom Penh, as well as the fact that we have so many recreational facilities here. The provincial authorities did an outstanding job of preparing the necessary infrastructure this year. Many,many domestic and international tourists gathered along the riverside in Kampot town for the celebrations,” he added.
Ngov Sengkak, director of the Siem Reap provincial tourism department, said that of the more than 300,000 visitors to the province during the New Year’s Eve celebrations, the department recorded about 295,000 Cambodian tourists and 9,064 international guests.
“The provincial administration created several new events to entertain our guests on New Year’s Eve, and provided a happy atmosphere for all of our visitors,” he added.
The New Year’s Eve saw over 330,000 visitors to the province’s resorts and temples, suggesting a drop in arrivals of around 30,000. Sengkak did not offer an explanation for the roughly 10 per cent drop.
Battambang provincial tourism department director Uch Ou Phinisara said that during the New Year’s Eve celebrations, the province recorded about 263,000 visitors, a large increase on the 158,110 that were recorded the year prior.
He believes that the increase could be attributed to food exhibitions, boat races and the 10th Samdech Krala Hom Sar Kheng Volleyball Cup 2023, all of which were staged in the province.
“The number of visitors to our province has steadily increased across the year. This growth was likely due to the excellent work by the provincial authorities. The relevant units have arranged numerous recreational locations and exhibitions. Battambang is a well-known province, and stimulates the interests of many potential guests,” he added.
The New Year’s Eve celebrations last year saw an estimated total of 2,022,920 people travelling throughout the Kingdom, including 2,006,117 Cambodians and 16,803 international visitors.
