6 March 2014. The Philippines has made its presence felt at the National Association of Travel Agents Singapore (NATAS) Travel 2014, which was held from February 28 to March 2 at the Singapore Expo.
A Philippine booth, featuring high-quality visuals of Philippine destinations, was set up at Hall 3 of the exhibition area through the efforts of Mr. Charles Leong, Representative of the Philippine Department of Tourism in Singapore. In addition to Philippine tourism collaterals, the booth also offered travel packages for the Philippines to prospective tourists who thronged to the annual NATAS event.
Now on its 35th year, NATAS Travel brings together travel specialists, tour operators and national tourism organizations to introduce popular and unique travel destinations around the region and the world. A total of 160 travel and tourism organizations participated in this year’s edition of the event.
To celebrate this milestone, NATAS donated $35,000 to three schools for students with special needs namely THK* EIPIC, Rainbow Centre, and Pathlight School through the Singapore Community Chest.
In welcoming Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Minda Calaguian-Cruz during her visit to the Philippine booth, Mr. Leong said that a higher percentage of guests were going for long-haul destinations suggesting a shift of preference. For the Philippines, Mr. Leong added that more interest was shown for more destinations in the south such as Kalibo and Palawan.
Ambassador Calaguian-Cruz noted that more direct flights from source countries like Singapore to more Philippine destinations will immensely contribute accessibility of these destinations to many would-be visitors who have yet to discover the gems of the Philippines.
During the opening program, NATAS Chairman William Tan highlighted that 2013 recorded an estimated 1.7 billion tourists. For the same year, Singapore received an estimated 15.5 million travellers translating to $25 billion in gross revenues for the industry.
He added, however, that while prospects remain bright for this year, the tourism industry is also facing key challenges in the form of manpower shortages and pressure for more connectivity adding that players have to do more to deal with a more demanding market. END