Capital draws 4.7 million visitors during festival

More than 4.7 million tourists visited the capital during the three-day Water Festival holiday, according to a report issued by the Ministry of Tourism yesterday. The figure represents a 5 percent increase compared with last year’s holiday.

The report says that 4,750,000 Cambodians and 31,446 foreigners visited Phnom Penh during the three days of the holiday. Ministry spokesman Top Sopheak told Khmer Times yesterday that the first day of the Water Festival saw only about half a million visitors, but that this number increased significantly over the next two days.

“On Day 2 and 3 the number of visitors increased considerably because people felt safe and wanted to enjoy themselves,” Mr Sopheak said. The Water Festival is one of the main holidays in the Cambodian calendar. Traditionally, people from across the country come to Phnom Penh to watch boat races in front of the Royal Palace during the day as well as light displays on boats and fireworks during the night.

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