Manila: The country's promotions effort has generated a record-high PHP11.3 billion in tourism sales lead last year, said the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB). TPB chief operating officer Maria Margarita Nograles stated this represents a 44.8 percent growth from the sales lead in 2023, attributing it to the Marcos administration's initiative to offer tourists authentic and experiential travel experiences in the Philippines.
According to Philippines News Agency, Nograles highlighted the impressive achievement, saying, "Last year, we hit our biggest sales leads ever in the agency at 11.3 billion just from our trade shows. So, this year, what we would like to do is really craft unique and world-class experiences and authentic experiences into the Philippines-that is our focus." She made these remarks during the TPB Pasasalamat event held in Intramuros on Monday.
Nograles further mentioned that the TPB, which is responsible for promoting the country's 13 key tourist markets, has observed increasing global interest in the Philippines as a travel destination. To capitalize on this, the TPB is preparing to enhance its presence at the Arabian Travel Mart to attract more tourists from the Middle East. "We cannot lose presence in Dubai, at the Arabian Travel Mart, we cannot. So, we have budget, we will enhance our presence there," she asserted.
In addition to participating in overseas trade shows, the TPB continues to support domestic promotions through its community-based tourism program. Nograles reassured that the TPB is committed to providing equal promotional efforts to all Philippine destinations, including the already renowned Boracay Island. "We are focused and following the direction of our secretary that we are to give equal promotions to all our destinations, and let us not forget Boracay is an award-winning island, so we continue on promoting Boracay," she explained.
The TPB also reported generating PHP436 million in sales leads this year at the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) 2025 Travel Exchange (TRAVEX), which took place from January 15 to 17 in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. These figures mark an 8.38 percent increase from last year's participation.
