“Bisita, Be My Guest” Program Launches in Los Angeles, Invites Fil-Ams Travelers to the Philippines — Travel

LOS ANGELES – Hundreds of Filipino-American travel enthusiasts and tour operators recently flocked to the Bisita, Be My Guest (BBMG) program officially launched by the Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT).

After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this is the first Philippine Travel Expo held in the United States by the Marcos government. The United States consistently tops the list of international tourists to the Philippines, with about 500,000 arrivals in 2022.

Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco told reporters on the sidelines of the BBMG launch event in Burbank on Saturday, April 22, that the current administration’s focus on the U.S. market will continue to be the largest in terms of international tourist arrivals to the Philippines. One of the major countries is optimistic.

“I am very pleased to learn that the Philippines remains a top destination for our US friends. The US has been a very strong source market for us, number one last year and number two this year (as of Q1 2023), so we are very pleased to welcome More Filipino and foreign friends join the Philippines,” Frasco said.

“Last year, what really supported the Philippine international tourism industry was the US market, which was number one, attracting 500,000 international tourists. Since we just finished the first quarter, we have received more than 300,000 tourists from the US,” she noted.

Flasco reiterated President Ferdinand “Bon Bon” Marcos’ call on all Filipinos around the world, including those living in the United States, to become Philippine tourism ambassadors.

“I am here, with our team at the Department of Tourism, with the love and warmth of the Filipino people as we support the Philippine tourism industry. We are here to invite our fellow Filipinos to be tourism ambassadors for the Philippines, foreign friends, guests or spouses to visit any of our beautiful islands in the country in exchange for houses and plots, condominium units, prize tickets such as free air tickets, vacation packages and tours,” said Frasco, explaining the mechanics of the BBMG program.

She described various destinations that both overseas Filipinos and foreigners can enjoy, such as beaches and water activities like diving in Cebu, Palawan and Bohol. For surfing, she recommends Siargao and La Union; Cordilleras and Baguio for nature adventures.

“If you want to experience Filipino food, of course, we have Pampanga which is very delicious, and many other places where the food is actually very different regionally,” the secretary added.

“The Philippines is now the world’s leading beach destination and the world’s leading diving destination as well as Asia’s leading tourist destination,” she added.

The tourism chief also called on Filipino-Americans to join in their efforts to achieve the goal of a 100 percent turnaround in tourism in the country by next year.

“Last year the Philippines targeted 1.7 million international tourists, but due to strong interest from the Philippines, we surpassed our target by receiving more than 2.65 million international tourists. This year, overall, we will be able to attract more than 480 tourists by the end of 2023. million international tourists and expects a 100% recovery in international travel next year,” she said.

She said the forecast was ahead of her pre-pandemic forecast that the country would reach pre-pandemic tourist numbers by 2025. The country recorded 8.26 million tourists in 2019.

She was equally grateful for the overwhelming response they got from American Filipinos.

“Thank you so much for continuing to support the Philippines by showing your love for our country and your great interest in our islands. As we are excited to start this project here in the United States, we very much hope that with the help of our fellow Filipinos in the United States , we can continue to spread the good news about the Philippines, the love and warmth of the Philippines. Filipinos are waiting for you,” she said.

Frasco also assured that in line with its mission to help the government achieve sustainable growth, the Department of Transportation is doing its best to come up with various programs like BBMG to boost not only the country’s tourism industry but the entire Philippine economy.

She acknowledged the contribution of domestic tourism revenue.

“Domestic tourism continues to help our regions and provinces tremendously in terms of economic contribution. That’s why we fully foresee a 100% recovery in domestic tourism this year, with our fellow Filipinos making no less than 122 million. All of this translates to driving the most important purpose of Philippine tourism, which is the livelihood and employment of our fellow Filipinos. Last year, tourism created at least 5.2 million jobs for Filipinos,” she noted.

Prior to the U.S. launch, DOT met with various tourism stakeholders in Japan and Germany and the Filipino community to continuously promote the Philippines as a major tourist destination.

“Since the Marcos government took office, we have been actively promoting the Philippines globally. In fact, I just came back from the ITB Berlin with the largest Filipino delegation. With the support of friends everywhere, that particular exhibition brought in $250 million in contracted sales for the Philippines,” she said.

“We are also very grateful for the opportunity to advocate for the Philippines in various jurisdictions including the UK and Saudi Arabia. We have also traveled to Thailand, Japan and many other jurisdictions, maintained positive relationships with other government ministers, and Maintain a government-to-government relationship with the state,” she added.

She said that in order to be able to achieve the goal of 100% recovery by 2024, in addition to BBMG and other tourism development programs, the DOT chief said the Marcos government is trying to maintain friendly relations with other countries.

“We are fortunate that our president has maintained a stance of being friend to all and enemy to all, which is great for Philippine tourism as our dual partnership with countries that share common interests and drive tourism continues , ” she says.

Asked about concerns about peace and order, Frasco said that while she encountered no issues in her meetings with tourism stakeholders, she assured that while the Philippine government is implementing these tourism promotion strategies, it is To ensure security and peace and order in the Philippines. The country’s tourist destinations are a top priority.

BBMG’s event in Southern California also featured booths from various travel agencies, airlines and airlines, real estate and Filipino-American entrepreneurs. Mr. Gary Valenciano of Pure Energy also acted as a guest performer at the conference.

BBMG will be officially launched by DOT on December 13, 2022. In addition to DOT, the campaign will run from January 2023 to April 2024 and will also include the participation of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW).

Under the rewards program, registrants will receive a travel passport that they can use to travel through major destinations, earn stamps and collect prizes at the airport. This will also provide them with a privilege card which provides discounts at nationally accredited institutions. There is also a sweepstakes for eligible sponsors.For more details about the program, you can visit https://bbmg.philippines.travel.