MANILA, Philippines – A total of 21,974 tourists, including returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) have arrived in the country since the Philippine government reopened its borders to international tourism, Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said Monday.
In a TeleRadyo interview, Romulo – Puyat said that the top sources of foreign tourists were the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and South Korea.
“Meron din tayo from Australia, Vietnam, and Japan. The list is long pero ‘yun ‘yung mga top natin,” Puyat added.
(We also have tourists from Australia, Vietnam, and Japan. The list is long, but those are our top ones.)
In a separate statement, the DOT cited data from the One Health Pass (OHP), which showed that of the 21,974 tourist arrivals at various airports in the country, 10,074 of them consist of returning OFWs while 11,900 are international tourists.
They arrived between February 10 to 19, 2022.
The DOT provided a breakdown of the international tourists who arrived:
- United States- 5,516 tourists
- Canada – 1,366 tourists
- United Kingdom – 918 tourists
- Australia – 891 tourists
- South Korea – 859 tourists
- Vietnam – 572 tourists
- Japan – 459 tourists,
- Germany – 447 tourists
“I was pleasantly surprised to find out nung Feb 10 pa lang marami na silang dumadating,” she said.
(I was pleasantly surprised with the number of arrivals on February 10 alone. )
She also said most of those who arrived reunited with their families and loved ones while others even came to extend aid to Filipinos displaced by Typhoon Odette last year.
“So talagang hinintay lang talaga nilang magbukas ang Pilipinas para makarating dito,” she noted.
(They were just waiting for the Philippines to reopen.).
According to Romulo – Puyat, the current increase in international visitors signals foreign tourists’ desire to visit the Philippines, which will aid the revival of the country’s tourism sector.
“We at the DOT continue to be optimistic that this trend will be sustained and will support, not only the tourism industry but also, the recovery and growth of our economy,” she added. Jericho Zafra, INQUIRER.net trainee
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