TPB welcomes new COO

(L-R) DOTr Usec. Atty. Reinier Paul R. Yebra, Diamond Hotel Philippines general manager Ms. Vanessa L. Suatengco, DFA acting USEC. Lourdes O. Yparraguirre, TPB COO Atty. Maria Anthonette C. Velasco-Allones, DOT USEC. Benito C. Bengzon, Jr., DTI ASEC. Rosario Virginia C. Gaetos, TIEZA asst. COO Jetro Lozada, Mapawa Nature Park president Eduardo Pelaez, and DOT ASEC Howard Lance A. Uyking

The Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines, the marketing and promotions arm of the Department of Tourism (DOT), warmly welcomes its new Chief Operating Officer (COO), Atty. Maria Anthonette C. Velasco-Allones.

A Career Executive Service Officer since 2010, Atty. Velasco-Allones brings her extensive civil service management expertise to TPB. Prior to her appointment, she served as Executive Director of the Career Executive Service Board (CESB) since 2007. Under her leadership, CESB received international recognition from the UN-Asia Pacific Center for ICT in 2009 and 2010 for “bridging the information and communications technology (ICT) capacity gap of government executives in the Philippines to achieve socio-economic and development goals”. She successfully spearheaded CESB’s administrative reforms and program innovations in support of leadership capacity enhancement among the country’s top career senior officials.

TPB achieves ISO 9001:2015 re-accreditation

The Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines once again proves its commitment towards the continuous improvement of its management systems by successfully maintaining its ISO 9001:2015 certification.

Enriching the tourism industry through knowledge-sharing

L-R: Arnold Gonzales, TPB DCOO; San Jeet, DOT market representative for India; Marie Venus Tan, TPB COO; Carlos Mori Rodriguez, EON Stakeholders Relations Group chief innovation officer; and Mohd Akil Bin Mohd Yusof, MATTA deputy president

The Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), the marketing and promotions arm of the Department of Tourism, recently gathered industry stakeholders, tour operators, hotels and resorts, and members of the academe for a one-day discussion on the latest trends in tourism marketing and strategies on how to provide mature and emerging markets an optimal experience to make them stay longer and spend more.

The seminar, themed “Philippine Tourism: Trailblazing Responsible Travel and Inclusive Growth,” is part of this year’s Philippine Travel Exchange (PHITEX), the biggest travel trade event in the country with over 200 local sellers and 200 international buyers participating.  

Growing Philippine tourism

The Philippines is once again at the forefront of the global tourism industry with its participation in the World Travel Market (WTM) 2019 in Excel, London.Organized by the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), the marketing and promotions arm of the Department of Tourism (DOT), the Philippines’ participation was able to generate more than P62 million based on partial sales leads gathered or a 35.73% return of investment.

With Korea, China, the US and Japan topping the country’s tourist arrivals, the Philippines’ participation in WTM strengthens the country’s presence in the international tourism and travel arena, particularly Europe and brought it close to its goal of attracting 8.2 million tourists by the end of 2019.

TPB set to accelerate local tourism with PHITEX 2019

Philippine Travel Exchange or PHITEX, the biggest travel trade event in the country, is now set with this year’s theme, Philippine Tourism: Trailblazing Responsible Travel and Inclusive Growth.

To be held from 19 – 28 October 2019 in Metro Manila, PHITEX 2019 will feature business-to-business sessions between foreign buyers and local sellers to encourage an exchange of tourism-related discourse among the participants and open doors for business opportunities.

Boosting domestic tourism with Philippine Travel Mart 2019

In its continuous effort to push forward the country’s tourism industry, the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines gives its unyielding support to the 30th Philippine Travel Mart (PTM) happening from August 30 to September 1, 2019 at SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.

Celebrating its 30thanniversary this year with the theme “Fostering Sustainable and Inclusive Tourism”, PTM remains to be the longest-running travel trade exhibition in the Philippines. Organized by the Philippine Tour Operators Association Inc. (PHILTOA), this year’s event will have over 250 exhibitors offering the best deals from all over the country. With Philippines being part of the ASEAN community, intra-regional travel will also be promoted, with equally-exciting offers from China, Japan and Korea.

CDO to attract more domestic tourists through Regional Travel Fair

The Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines, the marketing arm of the Department of Tourism (DOT), will expand its domestic footprint with the commencement of the 5th Regional Travel Fair (RTF) in the City of Golden Friendship, Cagayan de Oro.

Supported by the Local Government Units (LGUs) of Northern Mindanao, the RTF aims to promote and strengthen domestic tourism by encouraging travelers to discover more of the Philippines year-round. 

TPB supports Get Global Exhibition in Australia

The Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines, the marketing arm of the Department of Tourism (DOT), as part of its strategic thrust to strengthen its Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, and Exhibitions (MICE) campaign, supports Get Global – Where the World Meets, an industry exhibition in Australia at the International Convention Center (ICC) Sydney.

Launched in 2017, Get Global has become a reputable platform that connects international MICE suppliers with buyers, including corporate meeting planners, incentive houses and professional conference organizers (PCO), and has been recognized as "Exhibition of the Year" by Meetings & Events Australia for two consecutive years.

TPB gears up for global competitiveness

To achieve its global competitiveness goal and attract more travelers, visitors, and investors, the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines, the marketing arm of the Department of Tourism (DOT), is conducting a series of Tourism Marketing Educational Seminars among participants from DOT Regional Offices and local government units (LGUs), which kicked off in Batangas City this June, and will go to Cebu and Butuan in August.

The seminars will focus on skills training and upgrading competency level through workshops, case studies and collaborative research projects. This intends to boost employment rate, improve income opportunities and subsequently increase tourism arrivals and receipts. 

Full speed ahead for PH Tourism with the Philippine Business Mission to Japan

As part of the invigorated thrust to attract bigger tourist arrivals from Japan, the Philippines recently once again concluded a series of successful Philippine Business Mission (PBM) in Sapporo, Nagoya and Tokyo. Japan ranks 4th in terms of tourist arrivals, with a growth rate of 8.15% or a total of 631,801 Japanese visitors in 2018, compared to 581,180 arrivals in 2017.

TPB intensifies efforts to increase Chinese tourist arrivals

The Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines, the marketing arm of the Department of Tourism, recently joined ITB China which took place in Shanghai as part of its initiative to capture a bigger chunk of 129 million Chinese tourists travelling abroad in the past two years.

In 2017, about 960,000 Chinese tourists visited the country and more than 1.2 million in 2018. TPB hopes to increase Chinese tourist arrivals through its active and consistent participation in ITB China, the largest and fastest growing source market in the travel industry. For 2019, the event had an estimated 15,000 attendees, and approximately 800 exhibitors from 84 countries and 850 buyers from the biggest Chinese travel companies. 

TPB boosts efforts to attract Korean tourists

To boost efforts in attracting Korean tourists to visit the Philippines, Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines, the marketing arm of the Department of Tourism, will be participating in two major travel fairs happening in South Korea—The Korea World Travel Fair (KOTFA) on 06 to 10 June 2019 and HanaTour International Travel Show on 07 to 09 June 2019.

KOTFA is the biggest international travel fair in Korea with the participation of both international and domestic tourism-related organizations. This year, KOTFA is expected to generate an attendance of approximately 500 companies and 70 countries. The Philippines reserved six (6) booth spaces to be shared with airlines, hotels and top Korean travel agents in Seoul.

TPB to tap huge MICE market in China during IT&CM

Incentive Travel and Conventions, Meetings in Shanghai, China.

To help position the Philippines not only as a top tourist destination but also as a premier venue for meetings, incentives, conventions, events, and exhibits  (MICE), the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), marketing arm of the Department of Tourism (DOT), is set to tap into the Chinese MICE market through the annual Incentive Travel and Conventions, Meetings (IT&CM). To be held in Shanghai on 19 to 21 March 2019, IT&CM is the only MICE trade fair in Shanghai and Eastern China, making it China’s largest gathering of MICE professionals.

Delegates from the Philippines will include TPB representatives and ten Philippine co-exhibitors from different MICE industries: hotel and restaurant, travel agencies, tour operators, convention venues, and incentive houses. IT&CM is a great opportunity to expand the delegates’ business and networking capabilities through a series of MICE-related functions and tours.

Philippines, a diver’s paradise

With 7,107 islands, the Philippines offers bodies of water, with highly diverse  marine wildlife and seascape, for all kinds of divers and dive enthusiasts to explore. This is making the country a popular major diving hub in Asia.

The Philippines has countless diving spots suitable for divers of different skills – from beginners who are simply looking for fun recreational activities,  to intermediate divers seeking new underwater challenges to hone their skills and experts in search of new adventures. 

At the top of the list are Anilao in Batangas and the Tubbataha Reefs in Palawan,  with its impressive marine biodiversity and awe-inspiring vertical reef walls dropping to over 100 meters in depth. The Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park was declared in 1993 a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for its high density of marine species and the different kinds of birds and marine turtles.

Pampanga hosts TPB Regional Travel Fair

The Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) 4th Regional Travel Fair was held at SM City in Clark, Pampanga on April 4-7, 2019, highlighting domestic tourism in the country. 

Expected to draw over 100 participants from the travel trade sector, government agencies and local government units (LGUs), the four-day fair will include a two-day consumer expo featuring exciting travel deals, special fares, exclusive discount packages and promos offered by exhibitors composed of domestic tour, hotels, resorts, and airlines operators. 

The Philippines makes a splash at the ATF 2019 in Vietnam

With an estimated US$ 475,000.00 business leads generated during the four-day event, the participation of the Philippines in the recently-concluded ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) in Hanoi, Vietman was a resounding success for the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) with the Department of Tourism (DOT).

A 270 sqm. booth was secured by TPB to showcase the inviting array of local destinations, attractions, and special interest programs the Philippines has to offer. The Philippine Late Night FUNction, held on the third day of ATF, was very well attended, with fantastic prizes raffled off to lucky attendees. A sumptuous spread of favorite local dishes was served at dinner, with talented Pinoy performers providing the evening’s entertainment.

MICECON 2018, a success!

MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions/Events) Conference, the largest gathering of local and international MICE industry experts and practitioners, was successfully mounted this year in Bacolod. 

Organized by the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), the marketing arm of the Department of Tourism (DOT), MICECON 2018 featured educational talks from world-class experts. TPB uses MICECON to strengthen the country’s reputation as the preferred MICE destination in Asia. 

Global industry experts headline MICECON 2018 in Bacolod

From left to right, Susan Sarfati, Peng Ee, Jerry Sibal

Global industry experts of varying backgrounds and expertise are flying to the country for MICECON 2018, to be held in the ‘Sugar Bowl of the Philippines’, Bacolod City, on 27-29 November 2018, at the SMX Convention Center.

Organized by the Tourism Promotions Board (TBP), the marketing arm of the Department of Tourism (DOT), the MICE Conference or MICECON is the biggest industry gathering of its kind and is a highly anticipated educational event for travel and tourism practitioners.

TPB furthers biodiversity awareness in Surigao del Sur

In coordination with Haribon Foundation, the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) pioneered the implementation of the Biodiversity on Wheels (BOW) Program in Surigao del Sur on 25-26 September 2018 as the final leg of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Program for the year. 

Venus Tan is the new Chief Operating Officer of TPB

The Board of Directors of the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Marie Venus Tan as its Vice Chairperson and concurrently, the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the TPB.

Prior to her assumption of office at the TPB, COO Tan was the Director of the Department of Tourism in the Cordillera Administrative Region (DOT-CAR) for three (3) years. In that capacity, she spearheaded several urban rehabilitation tourism initiatives, including her brainchild campaign, Rev Up, Revive, Revisit, Revitalize (REV-BLOOM), Project Stobosa, Project PURAW and the Village Innovation Community Enhancement Project, among others. Likewise, COO Tan held the post National Coordinator for International Marketing and Promotions of North Luzon and Palawan from May 2015 until September 2018.