was hailed as "very significant'' by Tourism Minister the Hon. C.V. (Jim) Woolridge yesterday.

"I'm hoping that we can keep this momentum going,'' Mr. Woolridge said about the 9,726 people who arrived on the Island as of January 29.

"(The increase in visitors over 1994) is very significant in terms of the consistency we have seen in this area.'' In 1994 -- when 8,827 people came during the same period of the year -- visitor figures were up 11.2 percent over 1993.

Last week, 2,204 visitors flew in to Bermuda between January 23 and 29, 7.1 percent more than the 2,058 people who came to the Island during the same period of 1994.

Mr. Woolridge, whose Department has been preparing for an expected influx of European visitors this summer, attributed the healthy figures to the temperature guarantee scheme and the Tourism Department's "hard-working'' sales and marketing staff.

Last year, Government secured a direct air link to continental Europe from Lufthansa subsidiary Condor Airlines.

The temperature guarantee scheme provides visitors with ten percent hotel discounts, shopping and sightseeing incentives and free bus and ferry service for each day of the winter that temperatures fail to reach 68 degrees Fahrenheit.