Travel in the Philippines

Tourism remains resilient bolstered by government and foreign investment

The tourism industry in the Philippines plays an important part in the country’s economy and therefore in its ongoing economic growth. This continues to attract foreign investors, notably international car rental companies and international hotel chains.

Online sales rise as Filipinos research destinations online and players improve functionality

Travel modes, lodging, activities and travel intermediaries are all seeing greater growth in online sales than in offline, although in many cases offline sales still dominate. Traditional travel agencies recognise that online platforms increase their exposure but, for bookings and payments, offline remains the primary method preferred by Filipinos.

Partnering with tech players maintains value growth for budget hotels

Budget hotels remains the biggest segment within hotels in terms of outlet numbers, despite the rapid outlet expansion of luxury and upscale and mid-market hotels in the Philippines. Despite slow growth in outlet numbers, budget hotels is assured the fastest value growth among all hotel types during the forecast period due to the increasing occurrence of partnerships with technology-enabled players such as Zen Rooms, RedDoorz and Oyo Rooms.

New Tourism Knowledge Center offers data, insights and analysis

Recognising that the lack of a centralised database and information source has created difficulties for the tourism industry in the Philippines to monitor trends and gain insights, Rajah Travel Corp, a leading travel agency in the country, has been instrumental in the establishment of an online tourism portal to fulfil this requirement. The initiative has resulted in the creation of the Tourism Knowledge Center, which is described on its website as “a digital one-stop shop for information and documents pertaining to travel and tourism in the Philippines and Southeast Asia”.

Growth set to continue with sustainability in greater focus

The tourism industry is expected to continue to achieve further significant growth over the forecast period, in all areas of travel from tourism flows to online travel sales, as a result of ongoing investment by the government to improve infrastructure and by foreign players such as hotel chains and car rental companies. Online sales will continue to outpace offline as more players begin to offer greater online and mobile functionality and consumers become more confident in making bookings and payments online through websites or mobile apps.

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