Legalizing casino gambling in Saipan (the Mariana Islands) wouldn’t necessarily draw more tourists, according to a Japan-based tourism official for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

Snapping up four Japanese luxury Seiko watches as if they were cheap chocolate souvenirs, a 36-year-old Chinese tourist plunks down $4,500 in cash at a glitzy store in downtown Tokyo. For years, Japanese auto and electronics companies have been expanding in China as its economy boomed to offset slow growth at home.

A congressional panel is poised to take the first step toward ending a decades-old US ban on travel to Cuba and removing other hurdles to food sales to the Caribbean island, a senior lawmaker said.

Over 130,000 Canadian visitors came to Jamaica during the 2009-2010 winter tourist season, representing an increase of some 11 percent over the same period of the previous season.

International tourist arrivals grew by 7 percent in the first four months of 2010 according to the latest issue of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. This growth confirms the recovery trend beginning in the last quarter of 2009 and comes despite the challenging conditions of recent months.

With a population close to 3 billion, Asia is almost double the size of all the current leading cruise theatres put together, and boasts an as yet largely untapped source market. Since the inaugural Seatrade All Asia Cruise Convention in 2008, the cruise market in China has seen rapid development. Regulations have been eased, there has been marked government support for the industry and ports have been investing in the development of terminals and infrastructure.