Jan. visitor arrivals up nearly 16% after increase in airline services
JANUARY TOURISM arrivals totaled 732,506, a record for the month and ahead of the pace for the full-year arrivals target of 7.5 million, amid improved air connectivity between Philippine destinations and key travel markets, the Department of Tourism (DoT) said in a statement.
The January total, up 15.97 % year on year, was driven by a rise in arrivals from China as well as continued strong numbers from South Korea, the Philippines’ number one visitor market, the DoT said.
The estimates, provided by the DoT’s Tourism Research and Statistics Division under the Office of Tourism Planning, showed arrivals from South Korea amounting to 198,145 in January, up 28.36% year on year, while those from China totaled 111,344, up 29.55%.
“Last year’s momentum carried over this year with the improved air connectivity via increased flights between Philippine gateways and various airports in major visitor markets, including China, Korea, the United States, Australia and Canada,” Tourism Secretary Wanda Corazon Tulfo-Teo was quoted as saying.
The DoT noted that Xiamen Airlines recently launched a three- times- a-week direct service between Fuzhou, China and Kalibo, Aklan and Puerto Princesa, using the Airbus A321 aircraft with 197 seat capacity.
“Another new route from China that our Route Development Team is working on is Tianjin- Puerto Princesa. The development of new routes is in consonance with our National Tourism Development Plan’s strategy to upgrade air connectivity from major tourist source markets to the Philippines,” Ms. Teo said.
Rounding out the other major sources of visitors were the United States with 109,154, up 14.90% year on year, Japan at 57,038, up 7.79%, and Australia at 30,924, up 4.41%.
Ms. Teo expressed confidence that “with the combined efforts of the DoT and the stakeholders, we will achieve our 7.5 million target for international arrivals in 2018.”
The January statistics have yet to reflect the impact of a government crackdown on Boracay businesses which began this month, allegedly because some establishments are not treating their waste water.