Visitor arrivals were up by nearly nine percent for the first quarter of 2012, according to statistics released by the Department of Tourism this evening.A total of 34,571 people visited the Island from January to the end of March this year, up from 31,779 for the corresponding period in 2011.The vast majority came by plane, with 31,619 air arrivals, a 2.6 percent increase on the 30,824 who flew to Bermuda in the first three months of last year.Increasing numbers of visitors from Canada were partly to thank for the rise, although the United States remains Bermuda's strongest market.However, the average length of stay for each visitor decreased: for those in commercial properties, it went from 4.96 nights to 4.73; for other visitors it dropped from 6.23 nights to 5.92.