The Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) on Wednesday formally opened the country’s largest travel trade event –the 2024 Philippine Travel Exchange (PHITEX) gathering 86 foreign buyers from the country’s key and emerging markets, including India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

TPB chief operating officer Maria Margarita Nograles is optimistic this year’s event would surpass the at least PHP250 million sales leads yielded in its 2023 iteration.

Nograles said the 2024 PHITEX would highlight more of the country’s destinations that offer “experiential travel”.

“(The buyers) are really looking to see more experiential travel into the Philippines —experiences to our indigenous communities, our culture, experiences into learning a skill maybe how to cook, learning English. So, it’s meaningful and purposeful,” she said in an interview.

“We’re working with our private sector sellers to craft these experiences because global data shows us that this is what the world is looking for now,” she added.

At total of 115 Philippine sellers joined the 2024 PHITEX as well as 97 foreign buyers, including destination management companies (DMCs), tour operators, and travel agencies from 18 countries.

Eleven came from the country’s emerging markets, namely, the UAE, Macao, Indonesia, Turkey, France, and Spain.

The rest came from key markets, namely, South Korea, Japan, China, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong SAR, the United States, Canada, India, United Kingdom, and Germany.

“This year, we have a lot of Indian buyers. I think they are the most that joined us this year,” Nograles said, citing the growing interest of the market in the Philippines as a travel destination.

“We’re also looking to tap into the Indian market, Indian weddings and understanding what they are looking for,” she added.

Bonfire diving

While Philippine beaches remain a best-seller, Nograles is confident the country’s dive spots would be a hit to these foreign buyers.

One of the destinations featured at the PHITEX is Northern Mindanao, which is home to some of the country’s best diving sites, such as Camiguin and Agutayan.

“Iyong edge iba iba naman lahat ng dive sites wala namang magkatulad but for Camiguin we have a very unique island, aside from the diving ‘yong tourist destinations doon ang pinupuntahan. Marami ritong hawksbill turtle at ‘yong school of fish (All dive sites are different, nothing is the same. But for Camiguin, it is unique because aside from diving, the tourists can also travel around the island. There are many hawksbill turtles and schools of fish too),” Department of Tourism Northern Mindanao Director Marie Elaine Unchuan said.

“Sa Misamis Oriental, very unique ‘yong underwater springs, maraming soft coral formations na hindi makikita sa iba (In Misamis Oriental, the underwater springs are very unique, there are many soft coral formations that cannot be seen elsewhere),” she added.

In the same interview, Unchuan said Camiguin is adding a twist to attract more dive enthusiasts to dive around the island.

In this year’s Camiguin Dive Festival happening from Sept. 18 to 22, the event will introduce the so-called “Bonfire Diving” as an underwater shootout category.

Bonfire Diving was developed by Filipino dive photographer Ram Yoro and has since become an international term for diving with a single light source to capture the majestic lives of planktons and critters at night. (PNA)