The Philippine Travel Mart, one of the countries’ largest travel expos, is set to be held in September 2022, promising significant markdowns on travel packages to further jumpstart tourism activities.

To be held from Sept. 26 to Oct. 2, 2022 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City, Philippine Tour Operators Association Inc. (PHILTOA) president Fe Abling-Yu is hoping the travel show could surpass last year’s 200 exhibitors.

“By that time, I’m hoping we’re already fully opened. You see, this is a one-stop-shop where we invite all regional offices,” she told reporters on the sidelines of the PHILTOA general meeting in Makati City.

“Ang mga discounts pag-ganitong venue talagang they, the hotels, resorts, and other stakeholders, offer the best rates they can (The discounts of hotels and resorts in this kind of venue are really the best rates),” she added.

This year, PHILTOA is looking at bringing in national tourism organizations from the Philippines’ top source markets like Malaysia, Japan, and South Korea.

“If we can bring in Korea, Japan, and other countries, that will bring in more audience,” Abling-Yu said.

Meanwhile, the executive hoped that recent developments in the country’s tourism industry would be continuous. Starting February 10, the Philippines will accept international tourists from 157 visa-free countries as long as they are fully vaccinated.

“We are closely cooperating with the Tourism Congress of the Philippines so I hope this would be continuous. This is what we’re really waiting for,” she said.

“We started with land travel when we reopened, so this entry of foreign tourists would really be a big contribution to our economy in terms of receipts,” she added.

Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, the Department of Tourism continued to develop domestic tourism circuits and allocated about PHP91 million for product development efforts.

Apart from dive tourism, food and gastronomy, nature-based travel, the Philippines now offers promising product niches, including medical and wellness, pilgrimage, and culture tourism.

Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat is also anticipating “high interest” in the country’s domestic cruise tourism products.

“The DOT is facilitating the domestic deployment of Genting Cruise Lines’ Superstar Aquarius, an international cruise vessel that proposes to run domestic itineraries in the Philippines, targeting Filipino domestic cruise passengers,” she said in a recorded message during the meeting.

She described the reopening of borders as the beginning of the next phase of the industry’s ongoing recovery. (PNA)