MANILA, Philippines – Travel app Klook expects bookings for activities, accommodation and travel to grow by more than a quarter in 2023, driven by a revival in demand for rest and entertainment.
Klook Philippines and Thailand general manager Michelle Ho said travel demand in the Philippines will recover this year as tourists seek to complete travel plans despite economic challenges.
In particular, Klook expects travel bookings to increase this year due to the reopening of domestic and especially international destinations.
Domestically, Ho said, Klook has noticed an upward trend in activity bookings at Manila Ocean Park, Boracay and Tagaytay Sky Ranch.
Internationally, Klook expects Filipinos to flock to East Asian hotspots such as Hong Kong and Japan, as well as Singapore.
On a quarterly basis, bookings of activities in Boracay through Klook increased by 75% in the fourth quarter of 2022, 70% of which were from domestic guests.
Similarly, sales at Manila Ocean Park doubled between October and December thanks to offering services on Klook.
Ho also said that more than 50,000 tickets will be sold in 2022 due to Sky Ranch Tagaytay’s appearance on the Hong Kong travel app.
“We recognize that with our platform and user base, we can contribute to helping develop domestic tourism,” Ho said.
She said: “Many locals – both individuals and businessmen – depend on tourism for a living and we are eager to help domestic tourists discover more sources of happiness in this country and to help businesses make theirs more accessible to our users. product and service.”
Ho said in a Klook survey that 87 percent of Filipinos plan to travel in 2023, with 17 percent already booking holiday travel. Some 44% of respondents said they would prefer to stay six to nine days wherever they travel.
On the foreign front, Klook reported growing interest from Filipinos to travel to Japan, Singapore and Thailand.
Klook also reported a 230% jump in bookings for events in Hong Kong following the decision to reopen leisure travel and remove the mask requirement.
Klook offers more than 515,000 experiences, offered by 17,000 service providers in 1,500 destinations, bookable through its digital platform.
In the Philippines, Klook has partnered with nearly 300 merchants to run 600 events in 21 cities across the archipelago, and is preparing to expand its product portfolio to meet growing demand.
