Tourist arrivals in Myanmar rose over 20 percent to 315,823 in the first half (April-September) of the present fiscal year 2004-05 compared with the same period of the previous year, the local news journal Myanmar Times reported in this week’s issue.

These foreign visitors entered the country at Yangon, Mandalay and Bagan international airports with 97,736 coming in through Yangon entry point alone, the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism was quoted as saying.

Independent travelers took nearly 48 percent, while package tourists accounted for 11.7 percent, business travelers 21 percent and the rest went to other categories, it said.

The increase of tourist arrivals during the six-month period was attributed to the rise in the number of visitors from neighboring Thailand, the sources added.

More tourists are expected to arrive by the open season starting November.

According to the figures of the Central Statistical Organization, tourist arrivals in Myanmar stood 330,144 in 2003-04, of which 122,940 entered at airports, while 145,071 at border points.

Meanwhile, Myanmar has also launched tourism promotional campaigns in some Asian nations including Japan, Singapore, Malaysia and India.

Myanmar so far has 570 hotels with more than 17,200 rooms involving an investment of about 583 million US dollars plus 33 billion kyats (about 41.2 million dollars), according to official statistics.

Contracted foreign investment in the sector of hotels and tourism has so far amounted to 1.06 billion dollars since Myanmar started to open to such investment in late 1988.