Philippines Wants Long-Term Travelers – Digital Nomads and Gulf Expats
The Philippines had relied on the Chinese market, but is now focused on diversifying its source markets.
The Philippines is looking to attract long-term travelers. One solution: digital nomad visas.
In April, the Filipino government signed an executive order for the development of the digital nomad visa program. The plan is to woo quality travelers who respect sustainability efforts and benefit the country through high tourism spending and repeat visits, said Christina Garcia Frasco, Tourism Secretary of the Republic of the Philippines at the Skift Asia Forum.
Several Asian nations are getting into this market, including Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia. According to Frasco, the Philippines has an advantage due to the widespread use of English and easy access to cities and beaches.
The tourism department has partnered with the department of information and communications technology to improve Wi-Fi, and they have covered more than 90 destinations across the country. Frasco said the country is working with regional offices and local governments to ensure tourist safety is a top priority.
The upcoming digital nomad visa will allow travelers to remain in the country for a year, but hopes to make longer stays possible.
On Direct Connectivity
The Filipino government is working on a public-private partnership model to develop airports and expand connectivity.
Frasco said, 'We have made very conscious efforts to increase direct connectivity from all over the world, including flights from Paris to Manila and from Canada to the Philippines.' She added that she is hopeful of direct flights between India and the Philippines 'very soon.'
Last month, the country's flag carrier Philippine Airlines also agreed to consider expanding their existing partnership to enter into reciprocal code sharing agreements on flights between the Philippines and Dubai, and on select routes beyond the gateways of each partner airline.
The country is also working on expanding its direct connectivity to Australia, she said.
On Key Markets and Trends
In 2024, the Philippines recorded its highest-ever tourism receipts at about $13 billion. This was 26% above pre-Covid levels. However, the country also went through a 'devastating loss' in tourist arrivals from the Chinese market. It targeted 2 million tourists from China, but only 300,000 came.
'The lesson that we learned from that is to really diversify our dependency into other markets as well,' Frasco said.
The Philippines is now targeting markets such as the Middle East, the Gulf nations, and India. It is also looking to strengthen its source markets in South Korea, Japan, the U.S., and Europe. The country has seen an average of 500-800% growth in tourist arrivals from the Middle East and Gulf countries, especially due to a strong expat population.
To cater to these tourists, the Philippines is also pushing to expand Halal and Muslim-friendly tourism portfolio. The department of tourism has been working on driving accommodations and resorts to be more Muslim-friendly, and it has collaborated with the department of trade and hotel and restaurant associations to increase the number of Halal offerings.
Since the beginning of the year, the country has also been recording an average of 22% month-on-month growth in the number of tourists from Australia. Moreover, the country's top source market of South Korea continues to grow soundly.
On ASEAN Visa
For a long time, Southeast Asian nations have been discussing the possibility of an ASEAN visa along the lines of Schengen visa and the proposed Unified GCC Visa for Gulf nations. Frasco expressed her hope that it will again come up as a point of deliberation next year among the ASEAN block countries.
'Competition is always very healthy, but collaboration is healthier,' she said, when talking about the possible impact of the ASEAN visa.
The Philippines and Thailand have already signed a memorandum for their 'Two Countries, One Destination' effort.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
San Francisco Chronicle
29 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Asian shares gain as investors keep an eye on China-US trade talks
Asian shares were mostly higher on Tuesday as investors kept an eye on China-U.S. trade talks that might help stave off a recession. A second day of talks was planned after U.S. and Chinese officials met in London for negotiations over various issues. The hope is that they can eventually reach a deal to reduce painfully high tariffs against each other. Most of the tariff hikes imposed since U.S. President Donald Trump escalated his trade war are paused to allow trade in everything from tiny tech gadgets to enormous machinery to continue. In Asian trading, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 gained 1% to 38,473.97, while the Kospi in South Korea jumped 0.9% to 2,881.40. Hong Kong's Hang Seng edged 0.2% higher, to 24,242.03 and the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.1% at 3,403.51. In Taiwan, the Taiex surged 2%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 advanced 0.7% to 8,578.50. On Monday, the S&P 500 edged up just 0.1% and at 6,005.88 is within 2.3% of its record set in February. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped by 1 point, which is well below 0.1%, to 42,761.76. The Nasdaq composite added 0.3% to 19,591.24. Hopes that President Donald Trump will lower his tariffs after reaching trade deals with countries around the world have helped the S&P 500 has rally back after it dropped roughly 20% from its record two months ago. It's back above where it was when Trump shocked financial markets in April with his wide-ranging tariff announcement on what he called 'Liberation Day.' Some of the market's biggest moves came from the announcement of big buyout deals. Qualcomm rallied 4.1% after saying it agreed to buy Alphawave Semi in a deal valued at $2.4 billion. IonQ, meanwhile, rose 2.7% after the quantum computing and networking company said it agreed to purchase Oxford Ionics for nearly $1.08 billion. On the losing side of Wall Street was Warner Bros. Discovery, which flipped from a big early gain to a loss of 3% after saying it would split into two companies. One will get Warner Bros. Television, HBO Max and other studio brands, while the other will hold onto CNN, TNT Sports and other entertainment, sports and news television brands around the world, along with some digital products. Tesla recovered some of its sharp, recent drop. The electric vehicle company tumbled last week as Elon Musk's relationship with Trump broke apart, and it rose 4.6% Monday after flipping between gains and losses earlier in the day. The frayed relationship could end up damaging Musk's other companies that get contracts from the U.S. government, such as SpaceX. Rocket Lab, a space company that could pick up business at SpaceX's expense, rose 2.5%. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.48% from 4.51% late Friday. It fell after a survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that consumers' expectations for coming inflation eased a bit in May. Economists expect a report coming on Wednesday to show inflation across the country accelerated last month to 2.5% from 2.3%. The Fed has been keeping its main interest rate steady as it waits to see how much Trump's tariffs will raise inflation and how much they will hurt the economy. A persistent increase in expectations for inflation among U.S. households could drive behavior that creates a vicious cycle that only worsens inflation. In other dealings early Tuesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil picked up 31 cents to $65.60 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, also gained 31 cents, to $67.35. The dollar rose to 144.93 Japanese yen from 144.61 yen. The euro slipped to $1.1399 from $1.1421. ___
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
India central bank's large rate cut squeezes forward premiums, leaves rupee vulnerable, analysts say
By Nimesh Vora and Jaspreet Kalra MUMBAI (Reuters) -The Reserve Bank of India's surprise outsized rate cut last week will leave the rupee vulnerable to further depreciation by pressuring already depressed foreign exchange forward premiums, several analysts said on Monday. The rupee has underperformed its Asian peers in 2025 amid weak capital flows. A narrowing interest rate differential — with the U.S. Federal Reserve moving slower than the RBI in cutting rates — suggests the Indian currency may continue to lag. MARKET REACTION The 1-month U.S. dollar/rupee forward premium — typically more sensitive to liquidity conditions — fell to 7.5 paisa, its lowest level since November. Meanwhile, the 1-year premium, which is more responsive to rate differential between the U.S. and India, declined to 1.5250 rupees, marking its lowest level in nearly a year. GRAPHIC: WHY IT'S IMPORTANT A drop in dollar/rupee forward premiums makes the rupee less attractive for carry trades, and diminishes the incentive for exporters to hedge future receivables. At the same time, it raises the likelihood that importers—who typically hedge near-term payment obligations—will step up their hedging activity. The decline in premiums - a less favourable rate differential between the U.S. and India - could leave the rupee open to sharper depreciation. CONTEXT Against the backdrop of benign inflation and the need to support growth, the Reserve Bank of India last Friday delivered a larger-than-expected 50 basis point rate (bps) cut, exceeding the 25 bps anticipated by economists. In a further easing move, the central bank slashed the cash reserve ratio for banks. KEY QUOTES "One thing the rupee had going for it is that it offered attractive carry ... with the 50-bps rate cut from the RBI, carry attraction has been reduced," Mitul Kotecha, head of FX and EM macro strategy Asia at Barclays, adding that in an environment where investors are again focussed on carry, the rupee's appeal has been diminished. Falling premiums can be a "mild added headwind" for the rupee amid globally elevated yields, Dhiraj Nim, FX strategist at ANZ Research, said, and pointed out that if India growth data weaken, there could be scope for one more rate cut.
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Huawei chips are one generation behind US but firm is finding workarounds, CEO says
BEIJING (Reuters) -Huawei Technologies' chips are one generation behind those of U.S. peers but the firm is finding ways to improve performance through methods such as cluster computing, Chinese state media quoted CEO Ren Zhengfei as saying on Tuesday. The chipmaker invests 180 billion yuan ($25.07 billion) in research annually and sees promise in compound chips - or chips made from multiple elements - Ren said in an interview in the People's Daily newspaper of the governing Communist Party. The public comments are the first from Ren or Huawei about the firm's advanced chip manufacturing efforts. U.S. export controls since 2019 have prevented Huawei from accessing high-end chips and equipment to manufacture them. Huawei has since marketed its Ascend series of artificial intelligence chips which compete in China with offerings from U.S. rival Nvidia, the global leader in AI chips. The U.S. commerce department last month said use of Ascend chips would be a violation of export controls. Huawei is just one of many Chinese chipmakers, Ren said in the interview. "The United States has exaggerated Huawei's achievements. Huawei is not that great. We have to work hard to reach their evaluation," he said. "Our single chip is still behind the U.S. by a generation. We use mathematics to supplement physics, non-Moore's law to supplement Moore's law and cluster computing to supplement single chips and the results can also achieve practical conditions," he said. Cluster computing is when multiple computers work together. Moore's law refers to the speed of chip advancement. ($1 = 7.1802 Chinese yuan renminbi)
