STATISTICAL highlights for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) this year showed that the Philippines was seventh among countries in the region in terms of tourist arrivals. The table below shows that our country recorded 5.45 million tourist arrivals as of Dec. 2023, significantly lower than Thailand's 28 million, Malaysia's 20 million, Singapore's 13.6 million and Vietnam's 12.6 million. Although the country's tourist growth rate is modestly high at 105.4 percent, this nagging question kept our tourism officials frustrated: why does the Philippines underperform as a tourist destination compared to its neighbors?
Despite its natural beauty, unique ecology, highly urbanized cities and English-speaking population, the Philippines is still not top of mind among foreign tourists. The answer to why this is points to the lack of physical infrastructure, weak intermodal transportation, low internet connectivity and unstable public order.
Continue reading with one of these options:
Ad-free access
P 80 per month
(billed annually at P 960)
- Unlimited ad-free access to website articles
- Limited offer: Subscribe today and get digital edition access for free (accessible with up to 3 devices)