WITH an intensified campaign, the government is expecting record number of Indian tourists arriving in the country this year.
This developed as one of the leading Indian expatriate in the country said India has now placed the Philippines as a “new and emerging” destination in the Asia-Pacific region.
According to the Department of Tourism (DOT), they see Indian tourist arrivals to reach 100,000 this year after successful road shows in Kolkata, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai.
Without any direct flights yet between the Philippines and India to back its tourism campaign, total arrivals from the second-most populated country in the world has already reached 44,294 for the first half of the year, representing a 19.41-percent growth from the same period last year.
The spike over the first six months of the year was on top of the 2015 increase of 22.36 percent as compared to arrivals in 2014.
Tourism Secretary Wanda Corazon T. Teo was quick to point out the steady rise of Indian tourists in the country, calling India as one of the major source market for the Philippines.
“The four Indian cities we targeted are important feeder markets, hence, we are working on strengthening our relations with their local travel partners to assure sustainable growth,” Teo said.
Teo further noted that increased Indian visitor arrivals are facilitated by the free-entry privilege extended to Indian nationals bearing visas from the United States, Japan, Australia, Canada, Schengen, Singapore and the United Kingdom.
DOT’s Market Development Group, led by Director Verna Buensuceso, headed the mission in India, bringing along representatives of hotels, resorts, spas, tourist attractions and tour operators from the Philippines to interact with over 400 Indian trade partners.
Nash Dias, offline sales manager of India’s leading travel agent Stic Travel Group, expressed optimism that the Philippine road show will get an excellent response from the Indian market.
Meanwhile, Indian expatriate and Shroff International Travel Care CEO Arjun Shroff said the Philippines is now very visible among Indian travelers.
“Out of all the countries in the Asean region, the Philippines has been the least explored,” Shroff said, while citing that Indians are regular visitors already to Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia.
Shroff, who is also a ranking official of the Philippine Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and vice president at the Philippine Tour Operators Association, said the country is high on the list for corporate travel, meetings, incentives, conferencing, exhibitions, leisure and individual travel.
Shroff said that, even with no direct flights, there is seat capacity already from airlines with routes to Manila, Cebu, Boracay and Clark. He said flights from India to the Philippines takes anywhere between eight to 10 hours.
According to Shroff, Indian tourists in the country spend $200 daily on the average, including the cost of their hotel, meals and sightseeing.
Shroff said in the country one of the rising destinations for Indian tourists is Region 4A.
“They have beautiful beaches and resorts. They are not very pricy and everyone speaks good English,” Shroff said.
DOT Region 4A Director Rebecca Labit confirmed that they are becoming a favorite among Indian tourists coming to the country.
“In July alone, we had 3,000 Indians visiting us. Indians come in big groups to the region. We also now have Indian weddings being done here,” Labit said.
She said they are coordinating with tour operators in bringing more Indian tourists to the provinces in Region 4A.
From 2014 to 2015, Indian tourist arrivals in Region 4A grew by 44.10 percent to become its seventh-biggest market.
Particularly, Indians are coming in big groups to Batangas to experience its wide range of beaches and diving sites.
Shroff said for Indian tourist arrivals to increase, the DOT must continue its road shows and educate travel agencies about the Philippines and its many tourist attractions.