Philippines yearns for tourism surge

MANILA－Tom, a yacht worker on Boracay island in the central Philippines, has found his life full of hope after seeing more foreign tourist arrivals on the resort island famous for powdery white-sand beaches.

"The pandemic is very difficult for us, but now the (tourism of) Boracay is going into the recovery stage," he said. "We expect a lot of tourists coming from different countries to come here for vacations."

The tourism industry accounted for 12.7 percent of the Philippines' gross domestic product in 2019, the Philippine Statistics Authority says. However, the pandemic has battered the industry, forcing hotels and airlines to lay off staff. Almost 1.1 million workers were affected in the industry nationwide.

From April 1 the Philippines reverted to pre-pandemic entry rules for fully vaccinated foreign nationals from visa-required countries. The relaxed rules have opened the country to all travelers, including tourists, to enter the country known for world-class white-sand beaches, crystal clear azure seawater and diving resorts.

Boracay island remains the top tourist attraction in the country. The island logged more than 150,000 tourist arrivals in March, almost the monthly level in 2019, before the pandemic, the local tourism office says.

Resorts, restaurants and yachts on the island are now fully operational, and sunshine-drenched beaches await foreign visitors.

James, a beach-lover from Britain, is more than happy to choose Boracay island as his holiday destination. "To be on holiday again is a great feeling. It's my first time in the Philippines, and it will not be my last."

Curbs eased

The Philippines' Department of Tourism says 200,000 foreign tourists arrivals had arrived in the archipelago in the two months to April 7, since the country began to ease travel restrictions for international travelers.

The country's Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat said the sustained influx is a good sign of the industry being able to prepare to welcome foreign tourists again. "This continued growth shall aid our stakeholders, as well as the economy, in recovering from the effects caused by the pandemic."

Her sentiments were echoed by the World Travel and Tourism Council's latest Economic Impact Report issued at the council's summit in Manila on Thursday.

"The travel and tourism sector will be a driving force of the global economic recovery from the two-year pandemic," the report said.

However, as tourism in the Philippines recovers, local authorities are reminding travelers to adhere to basic health protocols, such as wearing a face mask, keeping a safe distance and avoiding crowds.

Felix Delos Santos, chief of the tourism office of Malay city on Boracay island, said almost all the island's residents and tourism workers have been fully vaccinated.

Visitors need to submit health information declarations and vaccination cards online before traveling to the island, he said. Moreover, resorts and restaurants on the island have recruited safety officers to remind visitors to observe basic health protocols. "We followed the national (pandemic prevention) policies," Delos Santos said. "The priority (of our work) is on the health and safety of our tourists."

Xinhua