DOT chief to personally invite more Chinese tourists to Philippines

MANILA, Philippines (Philippines News Agency) — Tourism Secretary Wanda Corazon Teo will be traveling to Macau next week to meet Chinese businessmen and invite more Chinese tourists to visit the Philippines.

"I will be meeting with foreign investors and Chinese tourists. I would be asking them to come to the Philippines," Teo said in a chance interview.

She made this statement after an arbitral tribunal ruled that China's nine-dash claim on the disputed South China Sea has no basis.

Teo did not elaborate but said that she was invited by these businessmen to meet which signifies the Chinese market's interest in the Philippines as a tourism destination.

"They would like to come to the Philippines. This is a group of Chinese going to meet in Macau and they would like me to be there," Teo said.

The Department of Tourism earlier assured that tourism as an industry will be able to insulate itself and that the territorial row and sea ruling will have no negative impact on tourism inflow in the Philippines.

Tourism Undersecretary Benito Bengzon Jr., in a previous interview, said that partners in both the Philippines and China continue to work closely to ensure two-way traffic is not disrupted.

He also said the department maintains a consistent strategy of maintaining "an optimum mix of source markets" to withstand or help compensate for a possible decline in arrivals from one market.

Another tourism official assured that a large number of Chinese tourists to the Philippines will still be visiting the country as it is set to welcome a cruise ship — Legend of the Seas — carrying some 2,076 Chinese tourists on September 23 and 24.

Tourism Director for Public Affairs and Advocacy Czarina Zara Loyola said the cruise ship will call port to Manila and Boracay.

Data from the DOT showed that China is the third top tourism market with 285,348 visitors or a share of 11.33 percent of the 2.51-million foreign tourists that visited the Philippines from January to May 2016.

China also posted the highest tourism growth of 80.79 percent. — Azer Parrocha