MANILA - Local and foreign tourists planning to explore different destinations in the Philippines will be treated to more a exciting and unique experience, organizers of the Travel Sale Expo 2023 said Wednesday.

The expo, which will be held from Sept. 29 until Oct.1 in a Mandaluyong mall, will feature more thematic tour packages such as for honeymoon, sports, and health and wellness, as well as travel tours in emerging local and international destinations.

It will also give opportunities to tourists who would like to discover the historical and cultural aspects of the Philippines as amusement parks and museums will be participating in the expo.

Travel Sale Expo 2023 Chairperson Michelle Taylan said travelers can expect distinct new offerings as more travel agencies, hotels, airlines, resorts, tour operators, travel insurance and travel accessories are welcome to participate.

Some 200 exhibitors will be participating in the Travel Sale Expo with an expected 60,000 foot traffic, according to Taylan.

“This is open to anyone. You don’t need to be affiliated in an association for you to join in this event. As long as you are operating legitimately, you can join in the travel world expo,” Taylan said.

She said a series of expos will follow after the upcoming one.

“Unlike other expos that they’ll just do it once in a year.... we prepared a series of expos which will be done in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. So that’s why we will be announcing the date when it's going to happen," she said.

Department of Tourism Undersecretary Myra Paz Abubakar said they will highlight Mindanao in the Travel Sale Expo.

Last May, the DOT launched the Legacy Campaign Colors of Mindanao which will showcase not just the beautiful destinations but the distinct culture of Mindanao.

“To make this project possible, DOT collaborated with various tourism stakeholders from LGU’s regional line agencies to the Philippine National Police, Armed Forces of the Philippines and even the Philippine Coast Guard in order to ensure that Mindanao is 100% ready for a large scale promotional campaign,“ Abubakar said.

With the launching of Colors of Mindanao, the DOT hopes more tourists will be enticed to discover the wonders of the island.

Abubakar said that despite the number of beautiful destinations in the region, many are still hesitant to travel there due to negative "perceptions" especially regarding peace and order.

“Mindanao is very, very beautiful. So why are there so few tourists in the island? Why is it that despite the ease of travel in an island that can be primarily traveled by land, as well as the existence of not one but two international airports, why are people not traveling here? I can name a few reasons here and there, but none could be more glaring than the issue of perception. For decades, there has been a disproportionate amount of negative news about the island,” she said.

For the Tourism Congress of the Philippines (TCP), the Travel Sale Expo 2023 will help further boost tourism of the Philippines as they expect more foreign tourists to visit the country.

“Originally, the expos were all for travel abroad, mga discounted travel abroad. But now, we included visitors coming from abroad. Tour operators from other countries are now part of these travel fairs. So yung mga tour operators, they are the ones bringing in tourist from other countries,” TCP President Bob Zozobrado said.

He said tourism in the Philippines is doing very well and he is confident the target of 4.8 million foreign tourists this year will be exceeded.

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From January to May 12 this year, some 2 million international tourist arrivals have been recorded by the Department of Tourism.

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