Philippines tourist arrivals surpass 4 million in first 10 months
The total is approaching the government’s full-year goal of 4.8 million arrivals.
The Philippines.- The Department of Tourism of The Philippines (DOT) has reported that the country recorded nearly 4.1 million foreign arrivals in the first ten months of the year. That’s coming close to the full-year target of 4.8 million arrivals.
South Korea was the biggest source of inbound tourists, contributing nearly 1.2 million, or 26.3 per cent of all arrivalsa. The United States accounted for 16.7 per cent, or 742,295 visitors, followed by Japan with 247,674 (5.57 per cent), China with 223,411 arrivals (5.03 per cent), Australia with 207,366 (4.66 per cent), and Canada with 180,625 (4.06 per cent).
Authorities introduced an electronic visa system, starting with visas for Chinese visitors in late August and the validity of eVisas has been expanded for some nationalities. Industry consultancy GCG Gaming Advisory Services has predicted that the Philippine casino sector could achieve GGR ranging from US$5.2bn to US$5.9bn for 2023. This would outpace pre-pandemic figures from 2019 (US$4.84bn).
