Koreans drive tourism growth in Philippines
As visitor arrivals to the Philippines grow, Korea continues to prove the country’s most valuable source market.
The Philippines recorded a total of 2.6 million tourist arrivals from January to August, an 11.7% jump versus the 2.33 million visitors welcomed during the same period in 2010. From that total 651,218 arrived from South Korea, which contributes 23% of all tourist arrivals to the nation. In August alone, there were 91,750 Koreans who travelled to the Philippines.
According to the Department of Tourism, the US remains a major income source for the Philippine tourist industry, generating 16% of arrivals. The Japanese are also taking an interest with numbers up 5.41% in the first eight months of the year, even in spite of the earthquake and tsunami. Other countries near the top of arrivals rankings include Australia, Singapore, Canada, Hong Kong, UK, Malaysia and Germany.
Arrivals from Hong Kong, however, dropped by 23% year on year. Though it remains an important market, the government maintains a “black” travel alert on the Philippines after the hijacking incident in August 2010.
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