The Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) reported that from January to March 5, international tourist arrivals to the Philippines amounted to 1,227,815. One of the most paradisiacal places in the Philippines is the underground river of Puerto Princesa, one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature.
The report released by Tourism Secretary Christina García Frasco detailed that foreign tourist arrivals took the lion’s share of visits to the country, with 1,160,129 (94.49 percent), while Filipinos in the Foreigners make up the remaining 67,686.
Foreign tourist arrivals took the lion’s share with 1,160,129 or 94.49 percent while overseas Filipinos make up the remaining 67,686.
Speaking at the Philippine Pavilion at the Internationale Tourismus-Börse (ITB) 2024 Convention in Germany, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco said this is 22.86 percent higher than the 999,390 arrivals received by the country in the same period in 2023.
“I would like to express my profound gratitude first to all our Philippine sellers who continue to champion Philippine tourism. As of today (March 5), the Philippines has received over 1.2 million international visitors, a robust indication of the future of Philippine tourism. Cheers to all the reasons to celebrate and Love the Philippines,” she said.
South Korea remains the country’s top source market for visitors, with 349,956 or 28.50 percent of the total, followed by the United States with 195,603 (15.93 percent), China with 85,876 (6.99 percent), Japan with 73,159 (5.96 percent), and Canada landing in the fifth spot with 50,555 (4.12 percent).
Australia took the sixth spot with 50,488 (4.11 percent), Taiwan with 42,955 (3.50 percent), the United Kingdom with 30,507 (2.48 percent), Singapore with 25,253 (2.06 percent), and Germany with 20,816 (1.70 percent).
In January, the country’s visitor receipts also grew by 4.84 percent to USD652.26 million from the USD622.14 million recorded in the same month last year.
The Philippines targets to generate 7.7 million arrivals this year after breaching its 4.8 million arrival target and capped 2023 with 5.45 million international visitors.
Puerto Princesa Underground River
The Puerto Princesa Underground River, one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature, features a spectacular limestone karst landscape and is located on the island of Palawan, Philippines.
One of the distinctive characteristics of this underground river is that it emerges directly into the sea and its lower part is subject to the influences of the tides. Furthermore, the area represents an important habitat for biodiversity conservation, the site contains a complete “mountain to sea” ecosystem and has some of the most important forests in Asia.