The Department of Tourism (DOT) on Saturday expressed optimism about sustaining the gains in Philippine tourism achieved under the Marcos administration.

Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco noted that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr's prioritization of the industry enabled it to reach record-breaking numbers and notable milestones in 2023.

“Tourism contributed an 8.6 percent share to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), marking the highest growth rate in Tourism Direct Gross Value Added in the 24 years of the Philippine Statistics Authority’s (PSA) compilation of this data,'' said Frasco.

Frasco said total inbound and domestic visitor receipts totaled P3.367 trillion showing a remarkable 75.3 percent increase from 2022.

''Tourism has indeed proven to be a powerful force for good, providing livelihood to 6.21 million Filipinos,” Frasco said.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported a $2.45 billion net trade surplus in travel services, a first in 15 years. Tourism investments also saw significant growth, totaling P509 billion, reflecting an impressive increase of over 34 percent compared to 2022.

The Philippines registered 5.45 million international visitors in 2023, exceeding its target of 4.8 million international visitors projected to visit the country for the entire year.

Of the total number of international visitor arrivals, 91.8 percent, or the bulk of 5,003,475, are foreigners. The remaining 8.2 percent, or 447,082, are overseas Filipinos.

As of July 19 the Philippines has received 3,326,354 international visitor arrivals from January 2024.

The DOT’s statistical monitoring report also showed that tourism earnings from inbound visitors are pegged at P282.17 billion from January 1 to June 30, or approximately 32.81 percent higher than the P212.47 billion revenue from the same period last year. Office of Public Affairs and Advocacy Department of Tourism