DOMESTIC tourism continues to be the backbone of Cebu’s hospitality sector, cushioning the impact of fluctuating foreign arrivals and sustaining hotels, resorts and attractions in recent years, an industry leader said.
Brian Connelly, president of the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines-Cebu, said local travelers still account for the bulk of bookings, fueling demand for staycations, weddings and small corporate events.
“In some properties, locals make up more than 80 percent of the market mix, offsetting the slower recovery of international arrivals, particularly from Korea,” said Connelly, who is also general manager of JPark Island Resort & Waterpark Mactan. “Without domestic tourism, the industry would have struggled to stay afloat. Filipinos have kept the sector alive, and they remain a very strong base.”
Cebu’s top foreign market, South Korea, has softened as competition intensifies. South Korea, the province’s traditional top market, fell sharply to 243,426 in the first six months of 2025, compared with 436,871 during the same period last year.
“We’ve always seen peaks and valleys in the Korean market, but now we’re not just competing locally. Countries like Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand are aggressively courting Korean tourists. Cebu may have grown complacent, relying on its popularity and accessibility, but it’s time to step up our game,” he said in an interview on SunStar Cebu’s Beyond the Headlines.
Still, Cebu is seeing signs of recovery in other markets.
Connelly noted renewed interest from Japan and Europe, with flights from Hong Kong, Singapore, and Australia helping diversify arrivals. The recent launch of Brisbane-Cebu direct flights, he added, is a “huge step in the right direction.”
Partial data from DOT 7 showed Japanese arrivals reached 127,465 from January to June 2025, already surpassing the full-year total of 103,486 last year. Taiwanese arrivals also posted gains, hitting 28,881 in the first half of 2025 versus 28,587 for all of 2024.
But persistent challenges—traffic congestion, limited transport options and lagging infrastructure—continue to weigh on Cebu’s competitiveness.
“Cebu is still a strong brand in Philippine tourism, but if costs keep rising without improvements in access and facilities, tourists will look elsewhere,” Connelly warned.
Cebu betting big on Mice
But while Cebu continues to be on the lookout for new markets, Connelly pointed out the Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, and Exhibitions (Mice) market to drive the next wave of growth.
He said Cebu’s accessibility through direct international flights, coupled with large-scale venues in the pipeline, makes it well-positioned to capture this segment.
“We now have the facilities to handle big ones,” he said.
The SM Seaside Arena, currently under construction, is expected to become one of the country’s largest indoor venues, capable of hosting concerts, conventions and exhibitions for thousands of delegates. The soon-to-open Mactan Expo in Lapu-Lapu City also further expands Cebu’s capacity for global trade events, complementing existing hotel ballrooms and resort facilities.
“Mice brings significant economic benefits because business travelers tend to spend more, stay longer and combine work with leisure. That creates a ripple effect across restaurants, transport, event organizers and local suppliers,” Connelly said.
To seize this opportunity, he stressed the need for more aggressive international promotion.
“We need to focus on fishing where the fish are. We can’t just rely on ads or slogans. You have to go where the tourists are. For example, we promote Cebu heavily in Korea—from baseball stadiums to TV shows—because visibility in the market makes all the difference,” he said.
The Department of Tourism has identified Mice as a priority growth area, positioning Cebu as a dual leisure-and-business destination.
With domestic travelers sustaining the present and Mice projected to fuel the future, industry leaders believe Cebu can cement its place as the country’s leading tourism hub outside Metro Manila—if backed by stronger infrastructure and global marketing efforts. (KOC)