PHNOM PENH: Cambodia and the U.S. have discussed opportunities to strengthen tourism cooperation to boost the flow of U.S. tourists in Cambodia.

The discussion took place here early this week between Cambodian Minister of Tourism H.E. Sok Soken and H.E. W. Patrick Murphy, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Cambodia.

H.E. Sok Soken emphasized that U.S. tourists are a main target market, ranking among the top ten markets for tourist arrivals to Cambodia both before and after the COVID-19 crisis.

The U.S. Ambassador shared his note about Cambodia's potential eco-tourism and agritourism and hoped to see more visitors from the U.S. to Cambodia.

Despite these challenges, the Prime Minister is confident that tourism will rebound in 2023. He pointed to the fact that Cambodia had already received 3.5 million international tourists in the first eight months of the year, an increase of 50.8% compared to the same period in 2022.

Domestic tourism has also seen a strong recovery, with 12.38 million visitors recorded in the first eight months of 2023, an increase of 62.5% over the same period in 2022.