RP foreign tourist arrivals barely improve in 2008

MANILA, Philippines - Foreign tourist arrivals in the Philippines last year barely improved with its top traditional markets declining, the Tourism department said on Wednesday. Foreign tourist arrivals rose 1.5 percent last year to 3.14 million, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said. Although arrivals from South Korea, Japan and the US all contracted, this was offset by the bigger number of tourists from Europe and Scandinavian markets. Arrivals from Russia improved by 34 percent; France, 19 percent; United Kingdom, 10 percent; Finland, 19 percent; Norway, 16 percent and Sweden, six percent. "Korea and the USA remained the top source markets with a share of 19 and 18 percent, respectively, accounting for 38 percent of the total tourist inflow," the DOT added. The Taiwanese market also expanded by 5.86 percent to 118,782 while Australia overtook Taiwan and Hong Kong, ranking the 5th largest source of foreign tourists to the Philippines. A total of 121,514 Australians visited the Philippines, posting an eight-percent increase. From the Middle East, visitors from United Arab Emirates were the Philippines' top visitors, followed by Saudi Arabia. The DOT also reported that the Philippines earned P180.8 million from its English Language study program for Koreans, P8.8-million in diving in Cebu and Bohol, and another P108.8 million from accredited medical tourism facilities. The agency, however, said it expects a flat growth for the year, given the global uncertainty. "The growth outlook for 2009 will continue to be weighed down by the contraction of outbound travel in key source markets. A zero to 1.9- percent growth for 2009 is likely, largely depending on the recovery of source markets," the DOT said. GMANews.TV