Department of Tourism Philippines announces ‘Visit Philippines Year 2015’

Akshay Kumar – Manila

The Department of Tourism (DOT) Philippines has announced 2015 as ‘Visit Philippines Year’ (VPY 2015). With numerous major events lined up in 2015, Philippines includes India as one of its key markets. As a part of the promotion, the DOT has launched a new microsite  itsmorefuninthePhilippines.com.

Speaking about VPY 2015, Maria Corazon G Jorda-Apo, officer-in-charge, market development group, DOT, said, “We see India as a potential market, as the population is huge. We are promotion luxury tourism and shopping tours for the Indian market as the number of HNIs in India is very large. 2015 is a big year for us as it is Visit Philippines Year. We have many major events happening in our country. In January 2015, Pope Francis will be visiting Philippines. We will be hosting the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) ministerial meetings and leaders’ summit in November, which is one of the biggest MICE events in our list.”

The DOT Philippines has witnessed a positive trend in Indian tourist arrivals, with nine per cent growth in July 2014. Speaking about the Indian market, Jorda-Apo, commented, “We have seen a strong interest amongst the Indian travellers. We have recently launched the Philippines Specialist Programme, as the Indian travel agents have shown interest to know more about our nation. We are expecting a lot of Indian tourist in 2015. Also the Indian travellers love to explore different cuisines, next year we are hosting the biggest culinary event in the world, the Madrid Fusion Manila in April.”

The DOT has unveiled fresh campaign banners focusing on five themes, namely: business meetings; history and culture; lifestyle and entertainment; music and the arts; sports, adventure, and eco-tourism.