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Tourism experts are expecting another recording-breaking year after figures were released for the first eight months of 2006.

The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has released statistics for the year up to August and they show the industry is thriving.

In total, 578m international tourist arrivals were recorded, an increase of 4.5% compared to the same period in 2005.

That bodes well for the rest of the year as the 806m people who travelled internationally in 2005 was an all-time record.

Predictions for 2007 suggest a slight decrease on the improvements seen in 2006, with a growth of 4%, but the UNWTO says that is in-keeping with long-term forecasts.

Africa is leading the way in terms of growth, with forecasts suggesting the continent will see 10.6% more arrivals during 2006 than in 2005.

Asia and the Pacific also saw big gains, with 8.3% more visitors in the first eight months of this year compared to last.

Despite recent unrest in the region, the Middle East has seen very positive growth rates of 6%, with analysts predicting the region could finish the year having welcomed 7.2% more tourists than in 2005.

Europe and the Americas saw the slowest growth, with Europe welcoming 3.1% more visitors than last year and the Americas seeing a slight improvement of 2.5%.

The global figures are particularly positive considering the outside factors such as terrorism and rising oil prices which could have had a negative impact on international tourism.

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