Boracay tourism dips from 1.79M to 1.72M

CROWDED While data show a slight decline in tourist arrivals on Boracay Island, at least 1.7 million still visited the island from January to October this year, with huge crowds flocking to its beach area, shown here on Oct. 27, to enjoy the island known for its powdery white sand beaches. —Photo courtesy of the Malay-Boracay Tourism Office

ILOILO CITY, Philippines — Tourist arrivals on Boracay Island in Malay town of Aklan fell by four percent in the first 10 months of 2024 compared to the same period last year.

According to the Malay Municipal Tourism Office (MMTO), the world famous destination welcomed 1,719,849 tourists from January to October this year, down from 1,791,594 in 2023.

A primary factor in this year’s dip has been a decline in domestic travelers who make up the bulk of Boracay’s visitors, the MMTO said.

Data from the tourism office revealed a 3.25 percent decrease in the number of local tourists who visited the island.

READ: Boracay Tourist Pass launch eyed this November

There were 1,358,947 local tourists who went to Boracay from January to October 2024 compared to 1,404,633 over the same period in 2023.

International arrivals also slipped as the island received 341,606 foreign visitors—a 2.88 percent drop from the previous year’s 351,730.

The Department of Tourism (DOT), however, remained optimistic and has set a target of at least 2 million tourists in Boracay by the end of the year.

For one, Boracay’s tourism industry has already bounced back to its pre-pandemic level, or when 1,742,459 visitors arrived on the island from January to October 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic struck.

The numbers dropped to just a fraction of the 2019 level due to travel restrictions and quarantines imposed during the pandemic years from March 2020 to early 2022.

Cruise tourism

October 2024 also saw a modest surge in foreign tourists with 25,718 arrivals primarily from South and East Asian countries, and 118,008 local visitors, highlighting Boracay’s continued appeal in regional markets.

Hoping to offset the current slowdown in the number of tourist arrivals, Boracay is gearing up to welcome an influx of international cruise tourists.

Four cruise ships are set to dock on the island in November and December, a move that is expected to bring a significant boost to the local economy.

In 2022, the DOT in Western Visayas unveiled three new “tourism circuits” that they intended to promote, described as “deviant” from the usual beach and Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibits (Mice) events that were promoted in previous years.

The new “tourism circuits” on the island include the Boracay biking tour, which is divided into sightseeing and endurance clusters targeted for families and adventure lovers.

The DOT also introduced the Boracay food crawl, which involves deconstructed full-course meals from participating restaurants; and the Boracay wellness workation that offers a relaxing retreat.

The island was previously closed to tourists from Apr. 26 to Oct. 25, 2018, for a massive rehabilitation after then President Rodrigo Duterte described the island as a “cesspool” due to pollution.