MANILA, Philippines— Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat on Wednesday said her agency is mulling on implementing the so-called “travel bubble” or “travel corridors” in reopening tourism in the country.
What's a travel bubble?
Puyat said a “travel bubble” or the gradual opening of some tourist destinations to other countries is also being implemented in countries such as New Zealand and Australia where there are low to no COVID-19 cases.
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She said that this practice is also being used by other ASEAN countries.
With a travel bubble, tourist destinations that are COVID-free or have low COVID-19 cases will be prioritized in reopening.
Puyat said that she talked with the Department of Tourism’s Australian partners last week and they discussed the plan to adopt the travel bubble concept.
“There’s an option for them to fly from Australia direct to Bohol. It’s an international airport, or direct to Kalibo, which is also an international airport,” Puyat said in a virtual Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum.
“If they want to go to Palawan they can enter through Clark, then via Clark straight to El Nido, Palawan. So, we’re pushing for that,” she added.
The tourism chief said the Philippines is fortunate enough that the tourist destinations of the country has low record of COVID-19 cases.
“The Philippines is lucky because we have 7,641 islands. We are lucky that a lot of our tourist spots practically have no COVID or if there are COVID cases, it’s just in the single digits,” she added.
Puyat said that domestic and international travelers’ main concern now is their safety so they would prioritize opening of areas that are safe and with enough safety protocols.
Last week, the DOT stressed that traveling for leisure will only be allowed under modified general community quarantine. It added that residents under GCQ cannot travel to MGCQ places.