Ngapali tourism slump due to clashes in northern Arakan State

By Zeya Linn 12 Jun 2019

Zeya Linn | DMG

11 June, Thandwe

Ngapali beach this year saw a five percent drop in local visitor numbers compared to last year’s numbers because of intensifying clashes between the Tatmadaw and AA in northern Arakan State, U Myint Soe, assistant director of Hotels and Tourism Department in Thandwe district told the DMG.

Visitors think that Ngapali is near townships where armed conflict erupt, so the number of visitors has decreased, U Myint Soe said.

“The fact is that, we are over 100 miles away from the battle grounds. We didn’t lose foreign visitors, but we lost five percent of the local tourism,” he said.

Some residents, however, say that the tourism slump could be more than five percent. Local residents are affected by the slump, said U Ba Tint, secretary of the Association for Welfare of Motel and Guest House Owners.  

“It is not just five per cent if you only count hotels. For guesthouses, it dropped about 30 percent. Our guesthouse has been open for four years and this year has been the worst so far. We lost fifty percent of the normal number of visitors to our guesthouse,” he said.

The popular Ngapali beach gained more visitors since 2013 steadily and it was posted on the popular website Trip Advisor as one of the best beaches in Asia in 2016.

Ngapali’ tourism had decreased since violence broke out in northern Arakan State in 2017 and it has decreased this year also due to ongoing battles between the Tatmadaw and the AA.