The Philippines should take advantages on the increasing interest from Scandinavian youngsters and focus on youth tourism and intra-Asian travel programs according to ASEAN, tourism Undersecretary of Oscar Palabyab said during ASEAN’s recent pre-summit meeting in Thailand by the task force for special tourism marketing.
Palabyab is in charge of tourism services and regional offices of the Department of Tourism (DOT). He said the Philippines have much to offer when it comes to youth tourism, such as adventure tourism with many spots for sports and eco-tourism activities. “Let us take advantage of the packages attractive to the young,” he said, noting that Singapore is now gearing up to host a Youth Olympics.
“We will list all our activities for the young people and put them on a web site,” Palabyab said, saying this would be part of a promotional scheme.
Intra-Asian travel springs from the reality of the global recession where tourists would rather spend While 2008 had an increase from Scandinavia, the financial crunch in Europe will take its toll on the Asian travel industry. To keep overseas tourists coming to the Philippines, “all tourism services should be offered in local prices,” Palabyab suggested. He is now trying to sell this idea to hotels, resorts and restaurants that charge foreigners a higher rate.
