the effects of recession.

Air arrivals were down two percent against June of 1991, when the Island's busy summer season was first registering the strength of the recession.

The Island was buoyed slightly by higher cruise ship visitors numbers. The 21 visits by the four regular ships brought in 20,722 passengers or 6.9 percent more than in June, 1991.

North American visitor arrivals were down while those from Europe -- comprising only 5.6 percent of the month's total -- were up 4.2 percent to 1,731.

Declines were recorded from all regions of the United States except the mid-Atlantic which includes New York City, Bermuda's most important single market.

In the US northeast, the historic mainstay of Bermuda's tourism industry, arrivals were down a relatively modest 3.4 percent. The region has been the worst hit in the US with some economists saying it has been in depression.

Large hotels continued to shoulder the burden of business decline. Their share of all visitors was off by 3.3 percent for the month. Their share of bed nights fell by 13 percent.

Small hotels posted a 16 percent increase in their share of all visitors arriving on the Island and a 6.1 percent rise in its share of total bed nights.

Cottage colonies -- normally the strongest industry performer -- hosted a smaller percentage of visitors. Their share of total bed nights fell 16.9 percent compared to June, 1991.