𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗧𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 – 𝗗𝗢𝗧 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗲𝗳

“𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘺.”

Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco had this to say during her meeting with leading figures in Indian tourism on the sidelines of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. ‘s state visit to India, reaffirming the Philippines’ readiness to welcome visitors from the country. ​

This initiative aligns with the newly established Strategic Partnership between the Philippines and India, spearheaded by President Marcos and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

According to a DOT report, leisure is the primary reason for Indian travelers, with a strong interest in beaches, shopping, and educational tourism.

“𝘉𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘴, 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘴 25 𝘵𝘰 44 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘶𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩 𝘺𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘳 𝘯𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 66% 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴, 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦’𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘴 𝘶𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯,” said the tourism chief.

In 2024, India ranked as the 13th largest source market for the Philippines, with 79,366 arrivals recorded. Secretary Frasco expressed optimism about increasing these numbers, emphasizing plans to intensify marketing campaigns aimed at attracting high-value and luxury travelers from India.

The Philippines, according to Secretary Frasco, is gearing up to enhance its connectivity and collaboration with Indian travelers, addressing previous challenges at an accelerated pace, reflecting the country’s proactive approach to capture the Indian market.

“𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥. 𝘍𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘢-𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺. 𝘚𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘤𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘭 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 13 𝘵𝘰 20 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺, 𝘴𝘰𝘰𝘯, 𝘴𝘪𝘹 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴. 𝘕𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵, 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘥𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘯𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘯𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘥 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨-𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘴”, said the tourism chief.

The introduction of direct flights is expected to reduce travel time and costs, while visa-free entry will streamline the process, encouraging more visitors to explore the diverse attractions the Philippines has to offer.

𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗪𝗲𝗱𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀

In her presentation, Secretary Frasco highlighted the potential of Cebu as a wedding destination for Indian couples, especially with the citation of Cebu as Asia’s leading Wedding Destination by the World Travel Awards.

Ranjit Vig of SKAL India highlighted the immense potential in the destination wedding industry, underscoring its significance in India. The industry boasts staggering numbers, driven by a young generation eager to explore unique locations. The representative stressed the importance of identifying destinations with efficient logistics, complemented by the availability of convenient flights.

“𝘞𝘦𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘩𝘶𝘨𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢. 𝘕𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥-𝘣𝘰𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯, 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘢 𝘩𝘶𝘨𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘶𝘴. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘶𝘨𝘦. 𝘚𝘰, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘵𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧, 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘴𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘶𝘦 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭,” explained Vig who noted SKAL’s Hospitality Association’s presence in “more than 80 countries with about 15,000 members across, including 40 verticals of hospitality, airlines, hotels, travel agents, tour operators, event managers, wedding planners.”

Vig noted that even non-resident Indians worldwide seek ideal locations for their celebrations. The financial impact extends beyond the weddings, as associated activities generate substantial revenue streams for the host locations. This market presents a valuable opportunity for growth and development in the tourism sector.

𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗠𝗜𝗖𝗘 𝗧𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗺 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀

Meanwhile, Sanchit Chopra Tribe stressed that the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) industry in India, valued at $49 billion according to him, presents a significant opportunity for expansion into the Philippines.

To capture this lucrative market, strategies must be developed to promote the Philippines as a premier MICE destination. He added that the Philippines has the potential to attract luxury travelers with its diverse offerings, while also accommodating budget groups. By enhancing incentives and addressing logistical challenges, the Philippines could rise to be among the top MICE destinations for Indian travelers within the next five years.

“𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥. 𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘶𝘹𝘶𝘳𝘺. 𝘚𝘰 𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘶𝘹𝘶𝘳𝘺, 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳, 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘶𝘴𝘩,” Chopra said.

In response, Secretary Frasco noted that the DOT and the Tourism Promotions Board Philippines, in partnership with the private sector, will launch initiatives to offer familiarization trips and business-to-business meetings.

“𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴,” added Secretary Frasco, highlighting efforts to establish sustainable flights from India to the Philippines.

“𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥, 𝘸𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘻𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘣𝘶𝘥𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘥𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦,” enthused the tourism chief.

Present in the meeting are Indian investor to the Philippines Raj Uttamchandani, Director of The Farm at San Benito in Batangas, and executives from organizations including the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), Amatra Tours, Big Breaks, Dream Trips, FCM Travels, ITS Global, Mach Conference, Travel Plus, Ease my Trip, Holiday Tribe, Make My Trip, Utazzo.com, WanderOn, Penta Travels, Strikers Travels, GRNConnect, TAAI, CAAIR Travels.