REVENGE TRAVELERS EXPECTED TO HEAD TO DAVAO TRAVEL MART
DAVAO CITY – The term revenge travel refers to a phenomenon where people, after being cooped up inside their homes and within their localities during the pandemic, will begin to travel to various vacation destinations to make up for lost time.
The Davao Travel Agencies Association (Dtaa) is readying for the expected influx of revenge travelers in the 14th Davao Mega Travel Sale from Feb. 23 to 25 at Abreeza Mall in Davao City.
“We are expecting the influx of tourists, kasi mas higher pa ang interest nila to travel compared to as before, ngayon talaga grabe (because their interest in traveling is even higher compared to before, now it’s really intense), and demand for airline tickets, and packages. That is why this coming Davao Mega Travel Sale, we have special rates available for tours, airlines, and other tourism products,” Dtaa vice president for travels and tours sector Pia Partoza Montano said.
She said the event is popular among Dabawenyos, who get good deals on outbound and inbound travel.
“Constantly, the travel agents are looking into better promotions not just for old clients but also to promote new products to new markets, because we get additional clients as we get good crowd during that time,” Montano said during her guesting at the recent PEP Talks Media Forum held at SM Lanang in Davao City.
One popular destination among the Dabawenyo market is Hong Kong, which is a traditional favorite for many Dabawenyo tourists.
Montano said another popular destination for Dabawenyo revenge travelers is Europe, particularly Turkey as the jump-off before proceeding to other European destinations.
“You would be puzzled why Europe is becoming very popular. Maybe because they have not traveled for several years; they were able to save up for that ultimate travel destination,” Montano said.
Other popular destinations are Japan and South Korea.
Local market
Aside from outbound airline tickets and tour packages, Montano said the 25 exhibitors during the Davao Mega Travel Sale also offer inbound packages.
“Majority of the exhibitors offer outbound packages, but there are travel agents who would sell within the region tour packages,” Montano said.
She added that the Davao region is a popular destination for domestic tourists and those coming for Mice (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, Exhibits).
“If there is something that we can develop for tourism, that is, we need to attract more international tourists,” Montano said.
Tourism arrivals for the first half of 2023 consisted of 97 percent domestic tourists and 3 percent foreign nationals.
Department of Tourism (DOT) 11 Regional Director Tanya Rabat Tan said the region will be very busy with tourism activities this 2024, and their main program is the Davao Adventure Challenge, a year-long tourism campaign highlighting the region’s natural beauty and eco-adventure escapades.
“Davao has a lot of offerings in terms of various adventure activities. We have a very vast area, and Mt. Apo is located here in Davao. We also have the highest waterfalls; we will be embarking on this project to highlight these attractions,” Rabat Tan said.
She added that the region is busy with activities, which will bring in more tourists.
Rabat Tan cited the Ironman 70.3 event and the Kadayawan Festival which will be both held in Davao City this August.
She said the promotional efforts of their private sector partners, such as the DTAA and its Davao Mega Travel Sale, will greatly help in tourism promotions.
Rabat Tan said she is confident that the region will meet and surpass the 2023 tourism target of 2.8 million visitors. The DOT-11 regional director said the year-end data is not yet available but based on recent statistics they are confident of reaching the 2023 target.
Based on June 2023 tourism arrival data, there were about 1.8 million tourists in Davao Region. /