DOT chief meets with South Korean officials to promote, bolster PH tourism

Coron,Palawan  (PHOTO COURTESY OF CORON PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE)

MANILA, Philippines – Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat recently met with tourism executives in South Korea to boost tourist arrivals from the East Asian country, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said Monday.

“The Philippines is more than ready to welcome our Korean tourists. Our entry requirements are one of the safest and most relaxed in Asia,” Puyat said Seoul last week

“It is understandable that some may still be reluctant to travel amid the pandemic but let me reassure you that the Philippine Government and tourism industry have instituted measures to keep everyone safe,” she added.

The tourism department said that only 5,551 South Korean tourists arrive in the Philippines since February 2022.

Prior to the pandemic, South Korea was the Philippines’ biggest tourist market with 1.98 million visitors in 2019.

Puyat led the Philippine delegation in meeting with the Korean tour operators and representatives of government agencies like the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy.

 The Philippine delegation also met with representatives from the aviation sector, including Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific, Asiana, Air Seoul, T’way, Jin Air, Jeju Air, and Fly Gangwon.

Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE)

During the visit, the tourism chief also mentioned the vaccination rate among the Philippines’ tourism workers and stakeholders, which has now reached 97 percent.

“With the majority of the country’s tourism workers being fully vaccinated, we have begun rolling out our booster shots for added protection. We hope that these efforts will help entice visitors to return, especially now that we have developed many new tourism circuits catering to the interests of tourists in this new era of travel,” she added.

She also informed Korean tourism officials and executives of the DOT’s “It’s More Fun with You” campaign to welcome back foreign tourists to the Philippines.

“In this campaign, we highlight the preparations that our tourism industry has carried out while travel was put on hold. We will also feature exciting destinations to visit, activities to experience, and culinary wonders to try. We have missed you; our destinations have also missed you, and the Philippines would certainly be more fun if you come and visit us,” she said.

Puyat likewise invited Korean tourism officials and industry players to the first World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) Global Summit, which will be hosted in Manila from April 20 to 22.

“We hope that tourism professionals and the media from Korea also come, attend, and enjoy. With the theme “Rediscovering Travel,” the Summit will provide an opportunity to address the social, environmental, and economic challenges as we rediscover global travel amid this pandemic,” she noted.  (Jericho Zafra, INQUIRER.net intern)

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