Fiji’s Tourist Trade Booming

From Our Own Correspondent SUVA, Sept. 8. r I TOURIST traffic to Fiji continues to keep up, and apart from regular cruise liners, practically every Canadian Australasian and Matson liner which comes north brings a large number of visitors from Australia and New Zealand to make a stay of either one or five weeks.

The liner Strathaird of the P. and O.

Company visited Suva on August 15 with 932 aboard, and perfect weather prevailed for the whole of the visit. The local agents (Brown and Joske, Ltd.) had ar ranged a very full programme, including drives into the country, native dances, firewalking, etc., and the tourists were loud in their praise of what had been done.

On September 3 the Orient liner Orford was here with another large list of Aus tralian trippers. She remained until the following day.

There is now a break until January, when the Katoomba, a frequent former visitor to Fiji, will make another cruise.

Her itinerary will include a call at Lautoka, which, for a long time, has agitated for a share in the Colony’s tourist business.

The call will give the visitors an oppor tunity of making the trip overland by car from Lautoka to Suva.

The calls of tourist liners are an in creasing revenue producer for the Colony.

In addition to the money which the cruisers spend on taxis and in local shops and which goes immediately into circula tion, the Government receives a large amount of revenue from the vessels them selves in the way of harbour, pilotage, wharfage, light and water dues.

Right Rev. Leonard S. Kempthorne, M.A., Bishop in Polynesia, paid an official visit to the Cook Islands early in August on board the N.Z. warship H.M.S. Wel lington.

Mr. H. Turner, managing director of the Auckland fruit firm of Turner and Growers Limited, returned to New Zea land by the Matua on September 8 after a visit to the Islands.