Foreign arrivals in the Philippines reached 441,056 in October, marking an 8.4 percent year-on-year increase, driven by double-digit growth from American, Japanese, and Australian tourists, according to data from the Department of Tourism.
Visitors from South Korea continued to lead the way in October, rising 4.7 percent to 119,469, or 27 percent of total arrivals for the month.
Data showed that arrivals from the U.S. rose by 18 percent to 69,982, while Japanese visitors increased by 14 percent to 28,255. Australia sent 14 percent more visitors, totaling 21,383, but arrivals from China decreased by 15 percent, with 20,167 visitors.
October’s figures brought total foreign arrivals for the first 10 months of the year to 4.88 million, up 9.8 percent year-on-year, with South Korean tourists accounting for 27 percent at 1.32 million.
While the latest data suggest that foreign arrivals will likely exceed the 5.45 million total for 2023, it also indicates that the 7.7 million target for 2024 will likely be missed, with only two months remaining in the year.
Balikbayans accounted for 393,734 of the foreign arrivals in the first 10 months of the year, reflecting a 7 percent increase.
