Myanmar introduces visas on arrival for tourists
YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar's military government will offer visas on arrival to boost the country's nascent tourism sector, a travel industry official said on Tuesday.
Tourist visas, which are normally arranged days in advance at an embassy abroad, will be now be available at international airports in Mandalay and the biggest city, Yangon, said Tin Tun Aung, secretary of the Myanmar Travel Entrepreneurs Association.
"We heartily welcome it," Tin Tun Aung told Reuters. "I'm sure it will have a strong impact on tourist arrivals to our country."
The cost of the visa will be $30 and would be valid for 28 days, he added.
Although Myanmar is rich in jungles, beaches and mountains and is dotted with hundreds of golden Buddhist temples, its tourism industry remains largely undeveloped.
Total tourist arrivals in Myanmar during for the fiscal year 2009-2010 stood at 300,000, compared with 255,288 for the same period a year earlier. Some 315,536 people travelled to Myanmar in the 2005-2006 period, official data showed.
Those figures are dwarfed by neighbouring Thailand, which drew 14.1 million tourists last year.
визы будут давать в двух аэропортах - Янгоне и Мандалае, стоить они будут 30 баксов на срок 28 дней. Список гражданств которым они будут даваться пока непонятен, так же как и сроки введения данного положения.
