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Philippines

Philippines

DOT records 3.33 bil PHP in estimated sales leads from participation in int’l tourism trade fairs.
Lockdown Status
Open
Inbound Travel
Open
Outbound Travel
Open
Confirmed
4,139,295
35,820 per million
7 Day Rolling Ave
+1,667
+1,439% vs prev week
Deaths
66,466
575.2 per million
Fully Vaccinated
-
0.00% of pop.
Source: Cases - John Hopkins University (2023-05-31). Retrieved from OurWorldInData.org

Latest Travel Industry News

Policy Summary

Lockdown Status

Alert Level 1 for Metro Manila, with all economic sectors fully operational. Interzonal and intrazonal travel permitted according to LGU rules.

Travel Restrictions

All international travellers permitted entry, regardless of vaccination status. Non-essential outbound travel permitted.

Economy Summary

Fiscal support for the tourism industry

Tourism Promotions Board's MICE Plus Programme (25 Oct 2021):

  • Financial assistance of up to $19,700 USD for MICE groups and exhibitions

  • Digital promotions of the event, F&B costs, venue rental, hotel accommodation for international visitors, and a half day tour will be assisted. For exhibitions, accommodation and half day city tour are also included

  • The incentives can be applied for physical, virtual and hybrid events

  • Giveaways to be held for all participants, cultural entertainment and provide F&B for one of the receptions

Department of Tourism Budget (23 Sep 2021):

  • A budget of 3.7 billion PHP for the DOT has been approved for 2021

Bayanihan Act 2 (22 Aug 2020):

  • 10 billion PHP fund for tourism

    • 6 billion PHP for soft loans for MSMEs under the Department of Trade and Industry’s Small Business Corporation

    • 3 billion PHP through the Department of Labor and Employment to help displaced tourism workers

    • 1 billion PHP allocated for tourism infrastructure upgrades

58 billion PHP fund under the Department of Tourism's Response and Recovery Program (26 May 2020)

Small Business Wage Subsidy Program for displaced workers (27 May 2020)

GDP Growth Rate

% per year
6.1

2019

-9.6
2020
5.6

2021
6.0

2022
forecast
6.3

2023
forecast

Inflation Rate

% per year
2.4

2019
2.4

2020
3.9

2021
4.2

2022
forecast
3.5

2023
forecast
Source: Asian Development Bank. Asian Development Outlook (April 2022).

Consumer Trends Summary

Air Asia Philippines Survey (Jan 2022):

  • 7/10 Filipinos still want to continue their air travel plans in the next 9 months

  • 60% plan to travel domestically. Top destinations included Palawan, Boracay, Cebu, Siargao and Bohol

  • If international border restrictions are relaxed, 5/10 are looking to travel abroad. Top destinations include Seoul, Singapore and Osaka

  • 69% prefer to travel with families, 40% with partners and 24% with close friends

  • 53% said the main reason to go ahead with travel was the need to be with families and friends

  • 13% are willing to spend 30,001-40,000 PHP on their trip

Finder's Travel Index (Dec 2021):

  • 34% of Filipinos say that they plan to travel in the coming three months, up from 32.5% in Nov

  • 25% are planning on domestic travel, while 13% are planning on international travel.

Airbnb Survey (Dec 2021):

  • Over 50% plan to travel more frequently to rural destinations that are not currently popular with tourists

  • Over 80% believe that it is important that their travel creates a positive impact for locals

  • 75% value using travel as a way to meaningfully connect with communities and culture

  • Over 70% were more inclined to contribute to the local economy, and will factor this into where they travel and how they spend as they are conscious that communities need to recover their economy

  • 76% will be more conscious when it comes to familiarizing themselves with what’s important to the communities they’re visiting and how they can make a contribution

  • Over 60% were willing to build sustainable tourism practices into their holiday plans

  • 60% plan to take work-cations or work remotely when they can

  • 62% plan to travel to more domestic destinations, allocating more of their travel budget within the country

Agoda Sustainable Travel Trends Survey 2021 (Aug 2021):

  • 26% Filipinos are most concerned about polluted beaches and waterways, followed by overtourism (24%), and with 14% each, the use of single-use of plastics in destination accommodations and deforestation

  • 35% of Filipinos believe tourism authorities are responsible for making sustainability changes, coming in second was the Government at 19%, while 18% of Filipinos hold themselves accountable for traveling more sustainably

  • Always look for eco-friendly accommodations and managing their waste, such as by using less single-use plastics, are joint top pledges for the public in the Philippines (49%), followed by 26% who will shop local and 25% pledging to switch off air conditioners and lights when they leave the room when they travel in the future

  • Practices that are considered helpful to travel sustainably by Filipinos are accommodations that use renewable resources (27%), destinations that are not high-density tourist spots (18%) and no single-use plastics in accommodation

  • When asked what practices Filipinos associated with sustainability, Filipinos most associated renewable energy such as solar, wind or water waste management (43%), followed by eco-friendly building design or furnishings (39%) and buying local products from local sellers (36%)

  • The additional measures to help make travel more sustainable according to Filipinos are easy identification of eco-friendly travel options, limiting use of single-use plastics in airlines/accommodations and establishing more protected areas to limit tourist numbers

Consumer Sentiment Chart
Containment Policies Timeline
How to read this graph
International Travel Restrictions
  • 0 - no restrictions
  • 1 - screening arrivals
  • 2 - quarantine arrivals from some or all regions
  • 3 - ban arrivals from some regions
  • 4 - ban on all regions or total border closure
Internal Movement Restrictions
  • 0 - no restrictions
  • 1 - recommend not to travel between regions/cities
  • 2 - internal movement restrictions in place
Stay At Home Requirements
  • 0 - no measures
  • 1 - recommend not leaving house
  • 2 - require not leaving house with exceptions for daily exercise, grocery shopping, and 'essential' trips
  • 3 - require not leaving house with minimal exceptions (eg allowed to leave once a week, or only one person can leave at a time, etc)
School Closures
  • 0 - no measures
  • 1 - recommend closing
  • 2 - require closing (only some levels or categories, eg just high school, or just public schools)
  • 3 - require closing all levels

📋 About This Page

Travel impact dashboard is an easy-to-read resource to stay informed on the impact of COVID-19 on the travel industry. Get the latest travel news and analysis on Southeast Asia tourism.

For travel professionals who need regular updates on their source markets. Know when to start marketing for inbound and outbound tourism.


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The content is a general description of informative nature only and is accurate at time of publication. Pear Anderson assumes no responsibility for completeness, errors or omissions in the information and makes no warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or suitability of the information. This collection of content is created by Pear Anderson and various sources credited on the page.