FOREIGN tourists are trooping to Thailand, Bali, and our other Asian neighbors because of their easier entry requirements, according to a group of business owners on Boracay Island.
The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Boracay (PCCI-Boracay) is urging government to remove unnecessary arrival procedures to attract more foreign tourists to the Philippines. It is also asking the provincial government of Aklan to lift the QR code requirement prior to entry to the island, famous the world over for its powdery white sand beaches.
In a letter dated October 6 to Dr. Maria Rosario S. Vergeire, officer-in-charge of the Department of Health, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, Aklan Gov. Jose Enrique “Joen” Miraflores, and Malay Mayor Frolibar S. Bautista, PCCI-Boracay requested the “conclusion of the One Health Pass requirement…” and that “fully vaccinated” tourists be defined as having received the first and second doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, like many countries.
In a separate letter to Miraflores and Bautista, copy furnished to Frasco and Department of Tourism Region 6 (Western Visayas) Director Christine Mansinares, PCCI-Boracay also said on October 6: “As Boracay focuses on the long road to recovery, [we] would like to recommend the conclusion of the QR code requirements.”
They added, “These Covid-era restrictions may have served their purpose, and we would like for the province and the [local government unit] to consider the termination of this program, in an effort to increase tourism, in particular as we look to encourage the return of foreign tourists.”
Arrivals reach 1.35M, mostly domestic
Both letters were signed by the officers: Wesley van der Voort, president; Michael Sweeney, vice president; Phillip Mark G. Santiago, corporate secretary; and Gisella Iñigo Winebrenner, board of director, copies of which were sent to the BusinessMirror.
Winebrenner shared, “Basically we are asking [government and the LGU] to remove unnecessary entry requirements so more foreign tourists can enter. Bali and Thailand have so many Western tourists now and we are losing on that opportunity.”
Latest data from the DOT showed arrivals in Boracay have been gaining ground, with both domestic and foreign tourists reaching some 1.35 million from January to October 9, this year, which is close to the 1.74 million arrivals from January to October 2019. From February 12 to October 9 year, there were 72,216 foreign tourists who arrived in Boracay.
Official data sources showed arrivals in Thailand have already exceeded 4 million from January to August 2022, with monthly numbers in July and August peaking at more than 1 million each. In Bali, some 1.2 million foreign tourists alone visited from January to July 2022.
The Philippines was the first in Asia to fully reopen to foreign leisure tourists but merely ranked number 30 in Condé Nast Traveler readers’ travel wish list for 2022, ranking behind Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia. (See, “PHL lags behind travel publication’s country list,” in the BusinessMirror, October 7, 2022.)
Other countries don’t require boosters
The Philippine government defines fully vaccinated tourists as those having received at least two primary doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, but still require a negative RT-PCR test result within 48 hours prior to arrival, or a negative antigen test result 24 hours prior to arrival. However, if the tourist has received at least a one booster shot, he is exempted from the Covid test, but has to show proof of his booster vaccination.
“Fully vaccinated in many countries is defined as [having received] the first and second shot. There are massive numbers of Western and Asian tourists that consider themselves ‘fully vaccinate,’ but have not and have no plans for a third or fourth booster shot,” explained PCCI-Boracay. It added that the Boracay QR code and the One Health Pass “has been [among] the reasons mentioned by our foreign tourists as concern for their travel to the Philippines.”
The Tourism Congress of the Philippines has also mentioned the Boracay QR code as one of the challenges of foreign tourists, and has requested government that an easier and revised OHP be the only requisite for foreign guests traveling to the island.
Image credits: AP/Salinee Prab