DOT eyes more flights from US to Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Tourism (DOT) aims to add more flights and routes between the United States and the Philippines, declared Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco.

Frasco said aside from partnerships with the airline industry and participation in travel exhibitions in the US, the agency would work with the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to develop the country’s travel infrastructure with the target of reducing the overall length of flight time to one’s final destination.

“Our goal is to increase these numbers (flights) to ensure that we give as much accessibility to the Philippines as possible. But, ultimately, in partnership with the DOTr, our intention is not only to maintain these primary gateways, but also to develop our secondary gateways that will take our tourists nearer to their final destination, to take out the hassle of traveling too many hours and too many flights to be able to access key destinations in the country,” she said.

US tourists were the Philippines’ top visitors in 2022, with 505,089 of them visiting the country, equivalent to 19.03 percent of total tourist arrivals, according to data from the DOT.

Meanwhile, the country has welcomed 304,289 travelers from the US – or 19.71 percent of total tourist arrivals – as of April 21.

Frasco met with executives of various airlines and tourism enterprises based in Los Angeles, California.

On behalf of the DOT, she expressed her appreciation to the US tourism market who, she said, “delivered for us and saw us through being our number one source market” when the country allowed foreign tourist entry in February 2022.