Tag Archives: Philippines Tourism ME

The Department of Tourism (DOT) Philippines has pledged its support for the continuity of the infrastructure programme of the Duterte administration, saying it is a big boost to tourism activities in the country. Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat made the commitment recently, as she joined President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, Senator Bong Go, Secretary Arthur Tugade, and Secretary Vince Dizon in inspecting the completed New Terminal Building of the Clark International Airport, which is considered to be part of the legacy of the Duterte administration’s ambitious Build, Build, Build programme. “Having world-class air, land and sea infrastructure such as the Clark Airport will help Philippine tourism bounce back sooner,” Puyat said. The operations and management of the Clark Airport will be overseen by the Luzon International Premiere Airport Development Corporation (LIPAD), a consortium between Changi Airports Philippines Pte. Ltd., Filinvest Development Corporation, JG Summit Holdings, Inc., and Philippine Airport Ground Solutions (PAGSS) Inc. Boosting air connectivity is classified as one of the priorities of the DOT under the National Tourism Development Plan (NTDP) for 2016 to 2022, hence the significance of Clark Airport’s new terminal building completion, Puyat added. Tourist arrivals in Clark Airport totalled 1.98 million in 2019, which dropped to just 494,387 in 2020 and 51,584 in the first half of 2021 because of travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Estimated tourist receipts stood at just Php 6.23 billion in 2020 and Php 2.32 billion for far in 2021, a notable reduction from the recorded Php 19.66 billion in 2019. The Department stressed that the fastest way to restore tourism to pre-pandemic levels is to ensure that tourism destinations and establishments comply with the necessary …

A virtual dinner was recently hosted by the Department of Tourism in Philippines for trade partners from the GCC. This informal gathering was a networking exercise to understand the current GCC market and the way forward. As GCC is way ahead of other regions in terms of vaccination drives, it is looking at better summer travel. At the event, SanJeet, Director, Durga Das Publications and Market Representative for the Middle East, shared the current realities in the Middle Eastern market, followed by an address by Daks Gonzales at the Head Office of Product and Market Development, Philippine Department of Tourism – Middle East. Gracing the evening, Verna Esmeralda C. Buensuceso, CESO III Assistant Secretary for Product and Market Development Department of Tourism from the Department of Tourism in the Philippines, expressed her gratitude to those taking time off to attend the event and enjoy the Filipino cuisine. She reiterated the importance of understanding the market at present and shared the various initiatives taken by the Government of the Philippines to ensure safety and rebuild the confidence of the travellers, especially from the Middle East. Leading CEOs from the Middle East attended the event, including Nasir Jamal Khan – Al Naboodah Travel & Tourism Agencies LLC, Jamal Abdul Nazar – Cozmo Travels,  Asim Arshad – Orient Travel & Tourism Agency,  Arshad Munir – SATA, Tarique Katri – Seera, Deepak Rawat – MakeMyTrip, V. Jayaram – Sharaf Travels, Mathew D’Costa – Dnata, Sumit Archarya – BCD Travel, Manu Mehrotra – Al Tayer Travel Agency, Suresh Ahuja – Trans Arabian Air Travel, and Sai Rattan – SNTTA The CEOs presented some very interesting facts about expectations, especially from the side of the locals …