HAVANA, CMC:

Cuba recorded a two per cent increase in tourist arrivals during the first three months of this year, according to official figures published yesterday.

The National Statistics Office (ONE) said a total of 809,937 tourists visited the country during this quarter.

ONE did not give the figures for the corresponding period last year, but said that this year's figure was a record when compared to last year.

"Cuba has been a part of a group of five Caribbean countries, since 1996, that accommodate more than a million foreign visitors a year, and it surpassed the two million mark in 2004, experiencing a gradual increase until it reached 2.35 million tourists in 2008," Prensa Latina, the official Cuban news agency reported.

It said that Canada is the country's main source of tourists, with 818,246 visiting last year. The other significant markets were England, Italy, Spain, Germany Mexico and Argentina.