PHNOM PENH -- Just 20 years ago, Cambodia was a country that many travelers to Southeast Asia skipped over to get to Thailand, Vietnam and other regional rivals. These days, they are flocking to see the country's pristine beaches, picturesque pagodas and famed Angkor temple complex.

In 2016, international arrivals to Cambodia increased by an annual 5% and pushed past 5 million, a number that is expected to increase by 11.5% this year and signifies a massive boost from the total of roughly 1 million tourists who visited in 2004.

But fears about limited scope for growth have spurred the government to consider new strategies to ratchet up tourism even further. One of the latest initiatives is "tiger tourism." Officials are aiming to bring the big cats, which have been functionally extinct in Cambodia since the last one was seen in 2007, back to the kingdom, a plan that they hope will bring both international praise for the revival of an extinct species and financial gain in the form of tourism returns.