The Department of Tourism (DOT) has expressed elation over the recorded breach in international visitor arrivals in the first five months
of 2023, surpassing last year’s baseline target.
DOT’s latest data show the country has recorded a total of 2,002,304 international visitor arrivals from January 1 to May 12 this year. The figure exceeded the entire 2202 target of 1.7 million foreign visitors target.
of The Department of Tourism (DOT) announced the good news over the weekend, citing the latest data of 2,002,304 international visitor arrivals from January 1 to May 12 that exceeded the entire 2022 target of 1.7 million foreign visitors.
“Notwithstanding the challenges and difficulties our country faced, a pandemic and various calamities that come into our shores, the good news is that these have done nothing to break the Filipino spirit or to diminish the beauty of the Philippines,” DOT Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco said in a news statement.
“We’re very optimistic for the prospects in our country in terms of being a tourism powerhouse in Asia, anchored on the strength of our Filipino culture as well as the values of sustainability, resilience and global competitiveness,” she added.
South Koreans made up almost a quarter of the total number of visitors with 487,502 (24.35%); followed by Americans with 352,894 or 17.62%; Australians, 102,494 (5.12%); Canadians, 98,593 (4.92%); Japanese, 97,329 (4.86%); Chinese, 75,043; Taiwanese, 62,654; British, 62,291; Singaporeans, 53,359; and Malaysians, 36,789.
Citing the same report, DOT recorded P168.52 billion in inbound visitor receipts from January to April, or 782.59% higher than the P19,093,427,035.59 generated during the same period last year. (With PNA)