JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER
WOW Philippines E-Newsletter - August 2008
Welcome to the August issue of WOW Philippines E-Newsletter, a monthly e-publication of the Philippine Tourism Office in Singapore. Through this channel, we aim to keep you abreast on the latest tourism news and developments in the country.
You are also invited to visit our website www.wowphilippines.com.sg for updates on different destinations and packages on offer. We hope that you will be encouraged to help us promote tourism to the country.
This month we are pleased to announce that the island of Boracay has been voted Best Destination (Leisure) in the TravelWeekly (Asia) Industry Awards 2008. We are also preparing for the upcoming Philippine Travel Exchange (PHITEX) in September, the premiere business to business travel mart.
Let us know what you think! We will be very pleased to hear from you.
In this issue:
• Message from the Tourism Attaché
• Philippine Tourism Office (Singapore) Activities
• Tourism News
• Destination of the month
• Travel Trends 2008
• Upcoming Events
Message from the Tourism Attaché
A regional tourism publication has confirmed what we in The Philippines have known all along - that the powdery white sand beach resort of Boracay is one of Asia's premier tourist attractions.
A panel of expert judges and readers of TravelWeekly (Asia) voted Boracay as Asia’s best leisure destination. The awards recognize excellence, professionalism and best business practices. Mr Tis Perera, associate publisher of TravelWeekly (Asia) described winners as true champions in the tourism industry.
We are, of course, delighted to receive this honor. Beautiful Boracay is The Philippines’ most recognized signature destinations in the international tourism market. Boracay is truly a jewel among Philippine’s heavenly islands.
Ms. Gerosel Siquian
Tourism Attaché
PHILIPPINE TOURISM OFFICE
Philippine Tourism Office (Singapore) Activities
The Philippine Department of Tourism launched its first trade and tourism fair in Singapore on 12-15 June 2008 to mark the Philippines' Independence Day.
The highlight was the four-day The Philippines Beyond The Usual Country Fair at The Tropics Atrium, Suntec City Tower 2 that featured music and dance performances by Filipino celebrities. Nearly half of the 30 stalls at the fair were taken up by travel exhibitors. Other trade and services entities occupied the rests of the stalls.
The event emphasized to Singaporeans and permanent residents the unique branding of the Philippines as a preferred destination for both leisure and business. It showcased and highlighted the various destinations and attractions as well as opportunities for business and investment that Singapore residents can enjoy and venture in.
The event also showcased the best of Philippine culture through both the visual and performing arts. Held as part of the major Philippine Community events in commemoration of the 110th year of Philippine Independence, it showcased the Filipino community spirit.
Her Excellency, Ambassador Belen F. Anota delivered the welcome message. Ambassador Anota highlighted the long running diplomatic relationship between the Philippines and Singapore, which is nearing 40 years. She also stressed the people to people relations between Singaporeans and the Filipinos.
Mr. Robert Khoo, CEO of the National Association of Travel Agents Singapore (NATAS), was the guest of honor and keynote. Mr. Khoo’s message highlighted the multi-faceted tourism characteristic of the Philippines, which Singaporeans would like to see in a destination. He endorsed travel to the Philippines by Singapore residents in view of the fact that The Philippines is a good and longtime ASEAN neighbor. Her Excellency, Ambassador Belen Anota awarded a plaque of appreciation to Mr. Khoo.
Present at the launch were Consul General Maria Lumen Isleta, other Embassy Officials, officers and members of the Filipino Community and Ms Joanne Sarmiento, Country Manager of Philippine Airlines, which was the launch’s major sponsor. Fourteen (14) Philippine travel trade representatives also graced the event including two DOT Regional Directors - Director Blesilda Diwa of Cagayan Valley and Director Pura Molintas of the Cordillera Administrative Region.
Ms Gerosel Sequian, Tourism Attaché of the Philippine Department of Tourism Singapore Office, said Singapore tourists are coveted in the region because of their high spending power. She said: “Singaporeans love to travel often - up to three to four times a year – to unwind and also to expand their businesses outside Singapore.”
Philippine Cultural and Entertainment Programme
The last day of the fair, 15 June 2008, was dedicated to the Filipino Community of Singapore. It was a day of non-stop Filipino entertainment with Vice Ganda and Cesar Montano as highlights, courtesy of ABS-CBN’s The Filipino Channel (TFC), partnering with Globe and Starhub (Singapore telecom provider).
GMA Seven, partnering with Smart Pinoy and Singtel also sponsored performers like Freestyle Band, John Lapuz, Dingdong Dantes and Ms. Pops Fernandez
The world-renowned Banda Kawayan got the most admiration from the local crowd with their daily scheduled performance, which also drew the attention of local TV and were featured as a news snippet on the Suria Channel.
The finale saw a crowd of about 2,500 mostly composed of Filipino Overseas Workers and Singapore Permanent Residents. A good number of Singaporeans also watched and enjoyed the celebration, the Filipinos being renowned for world-class entertainment.
Travel Trade Networking Night
The Philippine Networking Night was held on 13 June 2008 in the Vanda Ballroom of the Marina Mandarin Hotel. Her Excellency Ambassador Belen Anota was the keynote speaker. She spoke of the strong and long-time diplomatic relations between Singapore and the Philippines and the need for the ASEAN spirit to be taught and inculcated in the minds of school children all over ASEAN including the Philippines and Singapore.
Ambassador Anota highlighted the role of the Filipino Association in Singapore, the significant contribution of Filipinos like Pacita Abad to the arts in Singapore, and of our national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal and his Singapore sojourns.
The 70 relevant and active agents and travel trade contacts from Singapore who attended the event were re-introduced and updated on the Philippines as a destination through messages, video presentation and networking.
The highlight was a mini travel fair featuring travel representatives from the Philippines, which allowed for tabletop presentations and meetings with the Singapore travel trade. The sit-down dinner, which followed, also served as a platform for one on one exchanges. The Banda Kawayan provided musical entertainment, showcasing Filipino musicality and ingenuity.
Ms Gerosel A. Sequian, Tourism Attaché of the Philippine Department of Tourism Singapore Office, awarded Plaques of Appreciation to supporting airlines. These were given to Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and SEAIR.
Three lucky attendees won tour packages and accommodation vouchers. They were:
Grand Winner: From Universal Travel, Mr. B.L. KHOO, Managing Director who won a Cebu Pacific round trip ticket to Cebu plus 2 nights accommodation at the Maribago Bluewater.
Winner 2: Country Holidays, Overnight accommodation at Eskaya Beach resort; and
Winner 3: Hong Thai Travel, 2 nights accommodation at the Legend Hotel in Puerto Princesa
Philippine Food Festival
Flores de Mayo
Lovely Filipinas or 3rd generation Filipina-Singaporeans paraded down Marina Square in Renee Salud gowns, with dashing Singapore-based Filipino gentlemen as escorts. The event was organized by a group of Filipino lady volunteers led by Mrs. Marie Seow, Ms. Rose Canonizado, Mrs. Monina Pichay and Mrs. Nelisa Sudwani. The queen of the parade was the reigning Mutya ng Pilpinas, Ms. Annie Marie Morales.
Tourism News
Record turnout at Natas Holidays 2008
More than 65,000 Singaporeans and expats living in Singapore turned up for the fair to check out the best holiday deals. Approximately S$40million worth of holiday packages were purchased over the three days, an increase of 14 per cent over last year's fair.
PDoT Singapore made its presence felt with a pavilion representing Regional Offices and travel agents and tour operators from the Philippines.
Guest-of-honour was Mr Felix J Cruz, president of the ASEAN Tourism Association (ASEANTA), the umbrella body of representing national associations of travel agencies and hotels, ASEAN airlines and national tourism organisations.
Cebu aims to be Asia’s top medical tourism destination
Cebu Province plans to position itself as a world-class destination for medical and wellness tourism in Asia by 2010.
The Cebu Health and Wellness Council (CHWC) said various services, such as executive check-ups, heart surgery, organ transplants and cosmetology, are popular with tourists. CHWC has taken the lead in positioning the province as the ultimate destination for quality medical and wellness tourism.
The Cebu Doctors’ University Hospital and Perpetual Succour Hospital, both in Cebu City, currently receives European, American and Japanese patients. Foreign patients prefer medical treatment outside their home country due to lower costs.
For example, heart valve replacement procedure can cost a patient US$120,000 in the US, compared to US$9,000 in India, US$10,500 in Thailand and US$13,000 in Singapore. Foreigners can save much more if they come to Cebu. A coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) costs about US$18,000 in Cebu but US$100,000 in the US.
CHWC chairman Oscar Tuason said medical tourism revenues in Asia reached US$120 billion dollars in 2006. The sector has a projected annual growth rate of 20 per cent.
Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway
The new 93.77-kilometer Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) is expected to cut travel time by up to 80 per cent. Travel from Clark to Subic now takes only 35 minutes, which is a huge benefit for tourists. The SCTEX starts at the Tipo junction in Subic and ends in Tarlac.
After the Clark-Subic road, there are plans to connect the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) with the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) via Commonwealth Avenue and Mindanao Avenue in Quezon City, and extend the NLEX northwards to Rosario, La Union via the towns of La Paz and Gerona in Tarlac.
Boracay voted Best Leisure Destination in TravelWeekly (Asia) 2008 Awards
The island of Boracay has been voted “Best Destination (Leisure)” in the TravelWeekly (Asia) Industry Awards 2008, which aims to recognize the best in different fields and acknowledge their contributions to the tourism industry in Asia.
A total of over 2.2 million votes were received from readers and industry professionals for the awards. A panel of expert judges and readers of TravelWeekly (Asia) voted the powdery white sand beach resort of Boracay as Asia’s best leisure destination. The prestigious awards promote excellence, professionalism and best business practices.
The award ceremony was held at Bar None at the Marriott Hotel in Singapore. The event drew more than 250 travel trade players from all over Asia.
Receiving the accolade, Ms. Gerosel A. Sequian, Tourism Attaché of the Philippine Department of Tourism, said: “We are delighted to receive this honor. Boracay is the Philippines’ most recognized signature destinations in the international tourism market. This award confirms Boracay’s position as one of Asia's premier tourist attractions.”
Transglobal launches Clark to Bangkok and Singapore flights
Filipino-owned Transglobal Airways launched two major flights from Clarkfield in Pampanga. The airline commenced the Clark-Bangkok-Clark flight on July 22 and the Clark-Singapore-Clark flight on July 28.
The weekly schedule for the Clark-Bangkok-Clark route is Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday while the Clark-Singapore-Clark route is Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Manila airport's new terminal opens
Manila airport's third terminal opened recently for domestic flights to test run its baggage handling and check-in systems. The government plans to have Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 ready for international flights by early next year.
'We're now trying to perfect operational and technical procedures so we won't have any difficulties when we start international flights,' said Manila International Airport Authority's assistant general manager Tirso Serrano.
When fully operational, the US$600 million terminal can handle 13 million passengers a year. The arrival and departure halls have 32 immigration counters each, treble the total number at the two international terminals.
Philippines, Thailand to raise flight frequencies
The Philippines and Thailand will raise flight frequencies between the two countries in bid to boost two-way tourism and trade. The Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) in Clark Freeport received the biggest allocation with 8,600 seats.
Thailand will get a reciprocal seat entitlement of 8,600 for the Clark route bringing the total number of seat entitlements to 17,200 seats weekly or 14 flights daily.
Other airports outside Clark and Metro Manila were given allocations of 2,110 seats from the previous 850 seats. Air traffic at DMIA is expected to get a lift as Cebu Pacific plans to operate at the 2,500-hectare Civil Aviation Complex its Clark-Bangkok and Clark-Hong Kong routes.
Cebu Pacific also plans to operate other destinations in Clark, including Macau, Singapore and Taiwan, making the former US facility the carrier’s hub in the Northern Luzon area.
Korea’s Asiana Airlines operates its Clark flights every Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Asiana’s flights have increased to 10 per week from its previous seven flights. Asiana uses an AirBus 320 with a capacity of 142.
Other airlines operating at the airport are Tiger Airways of Singapore for its Clark-Singapore-Macau routes and Air Asia of Malaysia for its Clark-Kuala Lumpur and Clark-Kota Kinabalu routes.
PAL registers US$30.6-m profit, down 77%
Philippine Airlines reported a net income of US$30.6 million in its fiscal year ending March 2008 despite escalating fuel prices that hurt revenues of many international airlines.
PAL’s income, however, fell 77 percent from the US$130.5-million profit it booked in the previous fiscal year. The company attributed the lower profit to the absence of extraordinary gains that boosted the airline’s revenues a year ago.
PAL said revenues grew 8 percent to a record $1.504 billion in fiscal year 2008 while expenses surged 18.3 percent to $1.540 billion as a result rising jet-fuel prices.
PAL reinvests in the company’s long-term viability by upgrading fleet, systems and human-resource assets and by introducing new products. In May this year, the airline launched its low-fares brand, PAL Express.
The flag carrier is also in the mid of a comprehensive, P3.5-billion cabin refurbishment of wide-body fleet, which will see a new, bi-class product, alongside a major upgrade of the interiors and amenities.
PAL, MasterCard launch 1st World MasterCard
MasterCard Worldwide, Allied Bank and Philippine Airlines will introduce the Mabuhay Miles World MasterCard, the 1st World MasterCard in the Philippines.
The Mabuhay Miles World MasterCard represents the foremost premium credit card within the MasterCard portfolio in the Philippines.
The card will provide global acceptance, preferential access and treatment, recognition, exclusivity and exceptional service.
The Mabuhay Miles World MasterCard offers the lowest point-to-mile conversion (P38 to a mile) within the Philippine Airlines, bringing cardholders closer to getting complimentary flights aboard the airline than any other card.
Cardholders are entitled to a high credit limit and separate peso and dollar billings for local and international transactions with an option to pay their dollar billings in peso.
Destination of the Month
Boracay beach haven
For the tens of thousands of tourists who come to this island every year, it is an escape from the weary lives they lead in the city. A part of Panay Island in the Visayas, Boracay rose to fame three decades ago, with only a few rooms for sleepovers and less than a handful of eateries when it started.
Interestingly, the island's few early-dwelling expats were the ones who started the business there until travel and tourism boomed. Now Boracay continues to bag plums as a world-class destination.
As a business and leisure headliner here and abroad, Boracay attests to its gorgeous appeal as the top pick anytime for intimate family outings or big time corporate incentive bids.
Boracay island has been voted as one of the best beaches in the world many times over is just one of a thousand and one reasons why its residents and habitual visitors do not to lose their zest for this diminutive Eden on earth.
Boracay can be reached in a 35-minute plane ride via South East Airlines (SEAIR) Dornier 328 or an hour via SEAIR's LET 410, from Clark Airbase outside Manila to Caticlan, then about 15 minutes boat ride from Caticlan port to the island. Tricycles are the usual mode of transport on the island.
Travel Trends 2008
Solid Growth in Asia Pacific (ASPAC)
Singapore and Malaysia, two of the biggest source markets in ASEAN, showed a six per cent increase in the first quarter of 2008. The development of destination packages for Davao, Boracay, Cebu and Baguio in partnership with low cost carriers has expanded the tourist experiences available in the country.
Hong Kong also enjoyed positive results as visitor volume went up by 16 per cent to 31,344 arrivals. This feat can be attributed to the introduction of new products targeting adventure travelers, combined with competitive prices and aggressive campaigns.
Results in ASPAC show the ability of the Philippines to reinvent itself to attract tourists for second and third trips.
Upcoming Events
Philippine Travel Exchange 2008 (PHITEX)
PHITEX is DOT’s aggressive promotional effort to boost the Philippines position in the global tourism market. Its main component is the Travel Exchange or TRAVEX, wherein Sellers of Philippine tourism products meet up with international Buyers in one-on-one business appointments.
The venue, SMX Convention Center, is the country’s newest and most modern international convention center with more than 17, 152 square meters of exhibition and function facilities and conveniently located right beside the Mall of Asia, the third (3rd) largest shopping mall in the world.
This year’s theme is Adventure Tourism, now a multi-million dollar industry and without a doubt, one of the highest growth segments in travel today, making up one-fifth of the global tourism industry. Travelers all over the world are searching for more adrenaline-packed activities and excitement, more than the usual scenic packages.
In addition to TRAVEX, pre and post conference tours to key Philippine attractions and destinations are available for the Buyers to experience first-hand the beauty of our islands and the warmth of its people.
For registration, contact PHILIPPINE TRAVEL EXCHANGE 2008 SECRETARIAT C/O Travel Trade Promotions Department Philippine Convention & Visitors Corporation Email: phitex2008@dotpcvc.gov.ph
