Cambodia received 70,901 international visitors in the January-March quarter (Q1) of 2021, down 94 percent from 1.15 million in the same period of last year, the Tourism Ministry said in a report released on Thursday.

Thailand, China and Vietnam were the major three source countries of foreign travelers to the Southeast Asian country during Q1, the report said.

It added that 35,294 Thai, 23,837 Chinese and 3,562 Vietnamese nationals visited the kingdom during the cited period, down 77 percent, 91 percent and 98 percent, respectively, from a year earlier.

In March alone, Cambodia received 29,754 foreign visitors, a decrease of 87 percent year on year, the report said.

The sharp fall in foreign visitors was blamed on the COVID-19 pandemic that forced the country to suspend tourist visas to foreign nationals since March last year.

Tourism ministry secretary of state and spokesperson Top Sopheak said Cambodia has been studying the feasibility of allowing vaccinated international tourists to enter the kingdom.

“We hope that Cambodia will open its door to fully-vaccinated foreign tourists in the fourth quarter of 2021,” he told Xinhua on Thursday.

Tourism is one of the four key sectors supporting Cambodia’s economy.

Official data showed the country received 1.31 million international tourists in 2020, down 80 percent from 6.61 million in 2019. It earned a gross revenue of $1.02 billion  from the sector last year, down 79 percent from $4.92 billion  in the year before.

• Tags: COVID-19 pandemic, tourism