Philippines records 3.28m international arrivals in first seven months of the year

The figure was up 11.5 per cent in year-on-year terms.

The Philippines.- The Department of Tourism (DOT) has reported that the Philippines received 3.28 million foreign tourists in the first seven months of the year. That’s an increase of 11.5 per cent when compared to last year. The figure represented 92.7 per cent of arrivals in the country and includes people classified as overseas Filipinos.

South Korea remained the country’s biggest source market, accounting for 26.2 per cent or 932,632 arrivals. The figure was up 14 per cent when compared to last year. The United States is the second-biggest source market with 580,338 arrivals, 16.3 per cent of all arrivals.

There were 219,743 visitors from China, making up 6.2 per cent of all arrivals. This was a 54 per cent increase from last year. There were 213,864 arrivals from Japan, up 36.9 per cent in year-on-year terms.

During the first seven months of the year, the Philippines recorded over 3.55m visitors. For 2024, the Philippines aims to attract 7.7 million arrivals. Last year, it received 5.45 million international visitors. In July, tourism secretary Christina Garcia Frasco reported earnings from inbound visitors reached PHP282.17bn (US$4.83bn) in the first half.