And even cruise arrivals which usually partially offset falling air arrivals have shown a 1.2 percent drop.

Overall arrivals are now down six percent from 1994 with 25,927 fewer visitors arriving on the Island so far this year.

Declining air arrivals have been cause for concern at the Department of Tourism since the beginning of the summer. Optimism at the beginning of the year quickly waned as air arrivals began to dip by March.

The week ending September 3 showed an almost 14 percent drop in air arrivals and an eight percent drop in cruise ship passengers.

In spite of this, all five cruise ships reported more than 100 percent occupancy.