On Wednesday, February 28, Cambodia’s Minister of Tourism, Mr. Sok Soken, proudly announced that Cambodia has once more been recognized as Asia’s Leading Cultural Destination for 2023 by the World Travel Awards.
At the World Travel Awards (WTA), the country received two prestigious awards, namely Asia’s Leading Cultural Destination 2023 and Asia’s Leading Youth Travel Destination 2023.
Cambodia won the cultural destination award for the second yr in a row. Six other countries applied for the nomination, including India, Japan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam.
This yr marks the second time Cambodia has been honored as Asia’s leading youth travel destination. The country achieved similar success in 2022 as well. Meanwhile, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam have also been nominated by the WTA as Asia’s leading youth travel destination for 2023.
With this success, Sok Soken emphasized that this extraordinary achievement further strengthens the attractiveness of Cambodia as a must-visit destination for culture lovers.
The country is known for the Angkor Archaeological Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site situated within the northwestern province of Siem Reap. Its natural charm extends to an enthralling bay within the southwest of Sihanoukville. In addition, there are three other world-famous historic sites: the Sambor Prei Kuk temple area within the central Kampong Thom province, and the Preah Vihear and Koh Ker temple and archaeological site within the northwestern Preah Vihear province.
The tourism industry has turn into one in all the 4 key sectors supporting the Cambodian economy, directly providing roughly 450,000 jobs to local residents.
According to the Ministry of Tourism, Cambodia welcomed 5.45 million foreign tourists in 2023, a major increase of 140% in comparison with 2.27 million visitors in 2022. Gross revenues from Cambodia’s tourism sector reached 3.04 in 2023 billion dollars, representing 7.5% of gross domestic product (GDP), a rise of 115 percent from $1.41 billion in 2022.
The World Travel Awards, often known as the “Oscars” of the travel industry, have been a platform since 1993 to acknowledge, reward and have a good time achievements in various key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries.
Cambodia’s victory on this prestigious category confirms its unique attractiveness as a cultural center, attracting tourists from all over the world to go to ancient temples, royal palaces and historical sites.
