AS the relationship between the Philippines and China improves, the number of Chinese visitors to the country is expected to increase, according to the Department of Tourism (DoT).
Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo said the DOT is eyeing two million Chinese arrivals every year citing the need to increase the capacity of local hotels to accommodate more Chinese tourists.
The country’s leading airports such as the Clark International Airport, Davao International Airport, Cebu-Mactan International Airport and all other small airports in the provinces should also be expanded to accommodate the entry of more Chinese visitors, according to travel groups.
During President Rodrigo Duterte’s China swing, Teo met with eight Chinese investors, including travel agencies, charter operators, and hotel and restaurant owners to address their inquiries and concerns about running their businesses in the Philippines.
For this year, Teo said she was looking at one million arrivals from China, almost double the 490,841 tourists recorded in 2015.
Beijing Tourism Group (BTG) vice president Bai Fan said more Chinese tourists and investments were seen to come into the Philippines given efforts to improve the relations between the two countries.
“Because of the warming relations between the two countries, we see that tourism is very promising.”