The Philippines welcomed just over 5.4 million international visitors in 2024.
The Philippines.- The Department of Tourism (DOT) has reported that the Philippines received 5.44 million tourist arrivals in 2024. That’s an increase of 8.7 per cent when compared to last year. Some 91.4 per cent of arrivals were foreign tourists, including Filipinos residing overseas. The government aimed to attract 7.7 million foreign visitors in full-2024, after exceeding its 2023 arrivals forecast.
South Korea remained the biggest source market, accounting for 26.4 per cent of arrivals (1.57m). The figure was up 8.2 per cent when compared to last year. The United States was the second-biggest source market with 947,891 arrivals (15.9 per cent). The figure was up 4.9 per cent.
There were 388,316 arrivals from Japan (6.5 per cent), up 27.1 per cent in year-on-year terms, while China remained in fourth with 312,222 visitors, representing nearly 5.3 per cent of all arrivals. The figure rose by 18.3 per cent in year-on-year terms.
Last December, analysts at Maybank Securities forecast that tourism in the Philippines could fully recover to 2019 pre-pandemic levels in 2025. Analyst Ronalyn Joyce Lalimo said ongoing infrastructure improvements, including airport upgrades, could also help boost tourism from markets like South Korea, the United States, Japan, and Australia, which have strong historical and cultural connections with the Philippines.
Maybank highlighted e-visa services for Chinese and Indian visitors. Meanwhile, 43 projects underway under the Build Better More programme include five airport upgrades, including Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and the New Manila International Airport. These will enhance capacity, with the new NAIA expected to handle 62 million passengers annually, up from 35 million.
