The Philippines wants to capture a larger share of the burgeoning Indian tourism market, capitalizing on the over 5 million Indian travelers who visited Southeast Asia in 2024.
The strategic push gained momentum during a bilateral meeting between Department of Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco and Indian Minister of Culture and Tourism Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on the sidelines of the 12th ASEAN-India Tourism Ministers Meeting in Malaysia on Jan. 15 to 20, 2025.
“We are very hopeful that with the upcoming implementation program and the collaborative efforts from both our teams, we can increase the number of Indians who arrived in the Philippines last year from 79,000. Our goal is to enable the Philippines to attract a share of the over 5 million Indian arrivals in the ASEAN in 2024,” Frasco said.
She reiterated the Philippines’ commitment to swiftly implementing the memorandum of cooperation on tourism signed in 2019.
This includes expanding air connectivity from Manila to destinations like Cebu and Clark, facilitating the exchange of travel professionals and conducting joint marketing campaigns to effectively promote the Philippines as a top tourist destination for Indian travelers.
Shekhawat acknowledged the strong historical and cultural ties between the two nations and expressed confidence that increased collaboration would significantly enhance tourism flows.
“I would like to thank you for the initiatives that have been undertaken by the Philippine side to create more tourism potential between our two countries. I’m sure that the efforts of both the Philippine and Indian offices in tourism will yield positive results. The number of tourists flowing into both countries is set to increase, and certainly, the Philippines deserves a larger share of the total number of Indian tourists visiting ASEAN countries,” he said.
A part of the strategy to entice more tourists involved streamlining the e-visa application process and expanding the cruise visa waiver program to facilitate smoother entry for Indian tourists.
The DOT said it is also actively pursuing direct flights between major Indian cities like Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore and key Philippine destinations including Manila, Cebu, Boracay and Clark.