THE Department of Tourism (DOT) said that long weekends are positive news for the tourism industry as it has helped spur domestic travel and helped businesses.

According to data from the DOT, the Philippines has logged in some 102 million domestic trips for last year. 

They anticipate “that we would be able to exceed this number by the end of this year.” 

“Napaka-supportive po ng ating mga kababayan, especially sa local tourism. Nagpapasalamat po tayo sa kanila at sa ating Presidente dahil sa mga proclamation po niya for the long weekends that have really helped our tourists, our families take that trip across our various destinations in the country,” Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco said in an interview aired over TeleRadyo Serbisyo.

“Nakakatulong din talaga siya (long weekends), especially sa ating mga local resorts, restaurants, tourist transport, and the like. And nakikita po natin na nagiging lively yung local tourism economy of our destinations because the more opportunities there are for Filipinos and their families to travel, the more bookings po yung nakukuha ng ating local destinations,” she added. 

Frasco predicted that the country will exceed the target of 4.8 million foreign visitors for this year.

“Less than 20,000 na lang po ang kulang, mag-5 million tourists na tayo,” she said.