Boracay Island, Aklan—Business organizations here are dismayed by the decreasing number of tourists on this resort island. They have filed a joint resolution recommending several solutions that hope to bring back the glory days of this resort island.
The meeting was held on August 24, but the resolution copy was posted on the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry-Boracay’s Facebook page only last November 6.
Aklan Vice Governor Reynaldo Quimpo and his wife Gabrielle Calizo-Quimpo, a former representative, attended the said meeting.
The signatories of the five-paged resolution were the Boracay Foundations Incorporated, PCCI-Boracay, MICE Alliance-Boracay, Boracay Island Tour and Travel Agency Operators Association (BITATOA) and the Malay Tour Guide Association of Boracay.
Among the recommendations they made include putting up infrastructure dedicated to Persons with Disabilities, improving the Caticlan Jetty Port and the Caticlan Airport, regulating the proliferation of hawkers and illegal vendors at the beach, and implementing a unified ticketing system, among others.
Tourist arrivals in the famous Boracay Island dropped by four percent in the first ten months of 2024, totaling 1,719,849 visitors compared to 1,791,594 during the same period in 2023, according to the Malay Tourism Office.
The decline of 71,745 tourists was attributed to a slower recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing maritime tensions between the Philippines and China in the South China Sea.
While the island reached a peak of 1,742,459 arrivals in 2019 before the pandemic, recovery has been gradual. Domestic tourists fell by 3.25 percent this year, from 1,404,633 in 2023 to 1,358,947, while international visitors dropped by 2.88 percent, with 341,606 foreign travelers compared to 351,730 last year.
Despite these challenges, Boracay remains a popular destination, welcoming over 25,718 foreign visitors, primarily from South and East Asia, alongside 118,008 domestic tourists in recent months.
To boost numbers, the Malay Local Government Unit is enhancing its cruise tourism program, expecting four international ships to arrive in November and December.
This year, the Department of Tourism in Western Visayas is targeting two million tourist arrivals for Boracay, setting a high benchmark as the island works to regain its pre-pandemic momentum.
