Shanghai: Some Philippine government officials believe that boosting the tourism sector will significantly help improve relations between the Philippines and China.
According to Philippines News Agency, on Aug. 21, the "Philippine Business Mission to Greater China 2026" was launched in Shanghai, China, spearheaded by the Philippines' Department of Tourism (DOT) and Tourism Promotions Board (TPB). The event showcased various Philippine travel destinations to attract more tourists and investors from China.
"Tourism is one of the examples of people-to-people exchanges. So, this is really what we want to happen; this is what we want to encourage. Because there may be a lot of misinformation or misperceptions, and you can only truly understand a person if you actually visit where they are," said Consul General Myca Fischer of the Philippine Consulate General in Shanghai.
"Actually, the main objective of this Philippine Business Mission is to strengthen the engagement of Philippine hotels, resorts, and tour operators with Chinese buyers," emphasized Teresita Landan, acting head of the TPB Marketing and Promotions Sector. "The Chinese arrivals really helped in the total target of visitor arrivals in the Philippines. From January up to yesterday, less than 300,000 Chinese tourists (arrived in the Philippines), it represents a 68.9 percent growth rate over the same period in 2025," she added.
On a positive note, the gathering was a success, with travel deals worth millions of pesos secured during the event. "If we use our experiences in Hong Kong and Xiamen as a benchmark, we were happily surprised. Millions (in travel deals) were generated. Spot on, hard reservations. Booking paid, on the spot," said Francisco Lardizabal, Tourism Attach© at the DOT office in Shanghai.
The Philippine delegation to Shanghai included officials and representatives of the country's prominent travel agencies, hotels, resorts, and airlines. "This is a big opportunity to market our Philippine products, especially the different destinations we have in the Philippines," said Lorna Longno, managing director/GM of Amazing Trails Travel Co. Ltd. "Because the Chinese market is the number one market for Boracay, it's really important for us," said Belinda Candelaria, sales director of the Paradise Garden Resort Hotel.
A similar activity was previously launched in Xiamen and Hong Kong as part of the program's China leg.
