arrival figures.

Numbers have been up for five weeks running and some 1,695 more visitors flew here between January 1 and March 7 compared to last year, a 6.4 percent increase.

For the past four weeks, air arrivals are up 16.1 percent with a total of 17,330 visitors.

Latest weekly figures show there were 18.3 percent more air arrivals between February 28-March 7.

Yesterday Tourism Director Mr. Gary Phillips drew encouragement from the statistics which reflected strong northeastern markets.

Competitive airfares also bode well for the long-term, he said.

He said bookings to major hotels had also risen significantly, possibly due to the temperature guarantee.

But Mr. Brian Alkon, owner of Mermaid Beach, said he was only "cautiously optimistic'' about tourism prospects.

He predicted full recovery would take two more years.

Mr. Alkon cautioned against comparing this year's arrival figures with 1992, a dismal year. A truer picture could be had by comparing them with the good years of 1986 and 1987.