PHILIPPINES connect makes a
Twenty suppliers from the Philippines connected with more than 115 travel agents from across India, resulting in more than 3000 B2B meetings at Focus Philippines, in Goa
The Department of Tourism (DOT), Philippines, recently conducted ‘Focus Philippines', an interactive and inclusive event with the leading travel agents in India, from July 25-28, 2018. The event showcased fruitful business sessions between potential buyers and sellers at Lalit Golf & Spa Resort, Goa.
PHILIPPINES MEANS BUSINESS
The primary goal of this trade meet was to bring together key partners from the trade and suppliers from the Philippines in an open dialogue and to take the growth story of Indian outbound to the Philippines to greater heights.
Elucidating us on the meet, Ma Teresita C Daza, Ambassador, Embassy of Republic of the Philippines, New Delhi, stated, “The event is different from the various roadshows. Through ‘Focus Philippines', travel operators got a chance to conduct exclusive, one-onone meetings and gain a better insight on the destination. The event enabled them to further customise their product offerings, based on exhibitor inputs, thereby taking Indian arrivals to the Philippines to the next level. There were activities which gave briefings on the Philippines in between the B2B sessions. The destination packages were also highlighted.” Elaborating on the trend of growing tourism across the globe, she said, “As per the UNWTO Tourism Barometer International, tourist arrivals worldwide grew by a remarkable seven per cent in 2017 to reach a total of 1,322 million. This strong momentum is expected to
Travel operators gained a better insight on the destination
continue in 2018 at a rate of 4-5 per cent. Asia Pacific saw an almost six per cent growth, contributing to almost 324 million tourists. Two regions aptly contributed to an increase in tourist arrivals - South Asia and Southeast Asia, including India and the Philippines as well. It's an opportunity for us to provide the accessibility, amenities and attractions for the potential tourists who throng here.”
Daza elaborated on Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which Philippines is a part of, “Philippines is a part of ASEAN, where tourism has a prominent role. It contributed 301 billion to the GDP of the region as per 2016 statistics.”
TOURIST NUMBERS SEES A SURGE
The arrival number of tourists to the Philippines has seen a remarkable surge. Daza throws light on the same.
“In 2017, some 6.6 million foreign tourists visited the country, marking an unprecedented growth in tourism industry. As per a secondary source, while the average tourism growth in Asia Pacific was six percent, for Southeast Asia it was eight per cent and for Philippines it was an impressive 11 per cent. This can be attributed to improved air routes, cruise liners and infrastructure development and travel facilitation in the Philippines. The greatest asset of the country is its people, who exhibit warmth on the tourists who visit the country.”
On improving connectivity, she said, “There have been some ongoing negotiations, we have heard that PAL is interested in resuming flights from Manilla to Delhi and Manila to Mumbai, we are hopeful that either by the end of 2018 or first quarter of 2019, there will be direct flights between India and the Philippines.”
On issuance of visa, she said, “In terms of visas, the policies of the past remain the same. Those who have valid visas can come in the Philippines for a short-stay or tourism purpose. Nowadays, we require people to apply 10 days in advance for the visa and within eight working days the visas will be issued.”
FOCUSING ON INCENTIVES IN PHILIPPINES
Dakila F. Gonzales, Head, Office of Product and Market Development – India, Department of Tourism Philippines, said, “The inspiration behind the creation of the event is that we have noticed the huge increase in tourist arrivals of Indian nationals to the Philippines. In 2017 we had reached almost 107,000 arrivals from India; the growth rate is tremendous. We are growing at 22 per cent in arrivals from India and we believe we will hit 130,000 arrivals from India in 2018.”
“Our marketing strategy stresses on the fact that it is more fun in the Philippines. We are focusing on incentive trips, they are still the bread and butter of arrivals in the Philippines. There is a strong interest that is derived from family travel. We do have a huge segment of weddings that are being done in the Philippines, and are doing
We are growing at 22 per cent in terms of arrivals from India
our bit for further options for family holidays in the Philippines and matching it up with suitable adventure options.”
Elaborating on Focus Philippines, he said, “We want to sustain the growth achieved and establish loyalty among partners. We also want to further our growth and increase in the number of our partners both from Indian and the Philippines. We were looking for a platform where the interests for both would merge. Focus Philippines 2018 is definitely the ideal platform for that."