In 2019, each month except January demonstrated double-digit growth rates. August turned out the month with the most impressive growth of 27.54 percent. December saw the highest number of foreign tourist arrivals at 776,798.
The DOT attributes the 2019's results to the success of the new branding campaign focusing on sustainable tourism.
“Save Our Spots” initiative was launched to complement the new direction towards sustainable tourism encouraging visitors to travel in a responsible way to preserve the country’s natural and man-made wonders.
2019 was marked by a number of international awards and recognitions for the Philippine tourism industry. Among them – the World’s Leading Dive Destination award at the 2019 World Travel Awards, Asia’s Leading Tourism Board at the 2019 World Travel Awards and Excellent Partner Award (for Sustainable Efforts in Boracay, among others).
“Breaching the eight millionth mark heralds a new milestone in the country’s tourism history," Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said. He also added that the country hopes to sustain these gains in 2020 regardless of the global challenges the country faces at the moment.
2019 Foreign Tourist Arrivals in Philippines Overpass 2018's Results
News in Asia
The figures disclosed by Department of Tourism this month showed that International visitors to the Philippines in 2019 reached 8.26 million, 15.24 percent more than in 2018 when 7.16 million travellers visited the country.