MANILA - Filipino-Chinese businessmen said they anticipate a rebound in the tourism sector with the expected return of Chinese tourists next year.

The Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Inc (FFCCCII) said it sees tourist arrivals from China, helping boost Philippine economic growth to 6.5 to 7.5 percent in 2023.

FFCCCII said it is greatly encouraged by China’s decision to stop imposing mandatory quarantines on inbound travellers. This means both visitors, and returning residents, will no longer have to undergo days of quarantine.

Jeffrey Ng, President of the Astoria Hotels and Resorts Group, says the recovery should be gradual in 2023.

“We don’t expect to see a huge increase let's say January, February. It will probably be a gradual increase until the end of next year, 2023,” Ng said.

But he added that Chinese tourist arrivals will likely pick up to around ”3 to 4 million by 2024.”

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According to the Department of Tourism, since the Philippines reopened to foreign tourists in February, there were 1.65 million tourist arrivals up to Dec. 1.

Of this total, Chinese travelers accounted for around 33,000. This was a a far cry from the 1.74 million Chinese tourist arrivals in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ng said he is very bullish, and that the Astoria group will spend at least P1 billion over the next 3 years in Puerto Princesa, Boracay, El Nido, and Siargao.

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Henry Lim Bon Liong, president of the FFCCCII said he is also looking to restart a hotel projection Mactan which was mothballed by the pandemic.

“When we started, suddenly we were hit by the pandemic. At that moment we had to stop construction but hopefully we would like to continue construction next year,“ Lim Bon Liong said.

Cecilio Pedro of Lamoiyan Corporation, maker of Hapee Toothpaste, said they are also expanding into tourism, with investments in camping grounds in Cavinti, Laguna.

“We are expanding by creating more areas for camping because people enjoy camping and nature, and malapit lang sa Manila. It takes only 1 to 2 hours to go there,“ Pedro said.

Members of the FFCCCII will be travelling with President Ferdinand Marcos Junior during his January 3 to 6 State Visit to China.

Lim Bon Liong said they will be looking to expand cooperation in several fronts, including agriculture, trade, investment, and even oil exploration.

The FFCCCII said it hopes the Marcos administration will be able to develop a relationship with China that will be conducive to economic cooperation.

The tourism sector has generated P149 billion as of November, Malacañang said Wednesday.

The DOT is planning to open Mindanao for tourism, and set up a "cruise tourism" program involving 136 ports of call in 40 islands,.

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