Thursday, September 04, 2008 Korean arrivals decline in 1st half
KOREANS still topped the list of foreign tourist arrivals in Central Visayas for the first six months but fewer of them have visited the region during the period than last year, Department of Tourism (DOT) records show.
In January to June last year, more than 120,000 Koreans have been recorded to visit Central Visayas. However, the number of Korean visitors only totaled 109,842 or 8.71 percent lower during the same period this year.
DOT Undersecretary Phineas Alburo assured that the decrease is not alarming because by “looking at the bigger picture, Koreans still ranked as the number one foreign visitors in the country.”
“Koreans are adventurous. They want to discover other places. They only went out of Cebu and Central Visayas to try out other areas but they did not go out of the country,” he said in a phone interview.
He added that most of these foreigners are “repeat” visitors who are happy and satisfied with Central Visayas’ tourism and support services.
In the region, the bulk of the number or more than 103,000 of the Korean tourists chose to stay in Cebu while 4,603 Korean tourists stayed in Bohol.
They were part of the 393,848 foreign travelers who went to Cebu, Bohol, Oriental Negros and Siquijor from January to June this year. The figure is 12.22 percent higher than the 350,973 visitors in the same period last year.
With the increase in the number of domestic travelers to 673,010, the grand total of visitors in the region reached 1,066,858 or a 10.75 percent increase from 963,286 in the same period last year.
But DOT records also show that arrivals from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) region decreased by 6.86 percent from January to June this year, with only 9,005 visitors compared to the 9,562 tourists last year.
Moscow trip
Alburo said these people are mostly business travelers who spend most of their time in Metro Manila.
“What Central Visayas is primarily targeting are the leisure travelers who love to stay in our beaches, among others,” he said.
The DOT is trying to attract potential tourists from Russia and India to come to the country. Three weeks from now, the tourism agency will set up a large booth in Moscow to promote the Philippines.
Recent data shows that arrivals from various countries in Europe have increased by 23.04 percent or 57,324 visitors from January to June this year compared to the 46,591 visitors in the same period last year.
Alburo said they are expecting an increase in visitor arrivals from November to March when there are many holidays and activities that the tourists can participate in. (NRC)
