BORACAY, Cebu and Palawan are the Philippines’ top domestic destinations for balikbayans and their families this holiday season, a group of travel agencies said Thursday, Dec. 22.
JB Bernal Formilleza, Philippine Travel Agencies Association executive vice-president, said many overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are choosing to travel to these destinations after two years of coronavirus restrictions.
“Now that the restrictions are lifted, these OFWs and families are planning to go to Boracay and it is being manifested sa record ng mga travel agencies,” he said.
He added that airlines have added more flights to Boracay this week and next week due to the large number of travelers.
He said many travelers prefer Boracay since from there, it is easy to travel by land to other destinations such as Iloilo and Aklan.
Filipinos choosing to travel overseas, meanwhile, pick South Korea, Taiwan and Japan as their preferred destinations during the holidays because they want to enjoy the colder weather, Formilleza said.
The large number of bookings has been encouraging to tour operators, hotels and tour guides, which have been battered by lockdowns since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Online travel agencies have also helped increase the number of bookings, he said.
In a separate interview, Bureau of Immigration spokesperson Dana Sandoval said the Philippines is now recording 35,000 to 38,000 passenger arrivals per day while departures are at 25,000-28,000/day.
She said immigration counters worldwide are experiencing long queues due to the large number of travelers.
Americans comprise the largest number of foreign arrivals in the country, Sandoval said. (ABS-CBN News)
