Domestic travel perks up RP tourism industry

A sluggish inbound and an impending conflict in the Middle East all the more toughens up Jose “Jojo” C. Clemente lll, to work hard and give his all-out support to one of the country’s economic backbones – the tourism industry. He is executive vice-president of Rajah Travel and president of Trans-Inter, both under the Rajah Group of Companies (RGC)

Clemente, also the outgoing vice-president for inbound of the Philippine Travel Agencies Association (PTAA), one of the industry’s trusty allies, expressed his commitment to prop up projects like the Department of Tourism’s (DOT) Visit Philippines 2003, despite the wait-andsee status abroad.

Like all major trade leaders, Clemente considers domestic travel as the most viable money-maker to continue to beefing up the country’s tourism industry, especially during rough and risky times.

The optimistic yet cautious Clemente said, “Though we are doing our best to shore up major pitches to boost our tourism industry here and abroad, we still need to consider if and when something breaks out in the Middle East because our main concern now is the fickle global situation.”

Clemente credits the national government’s continuous hold to the industry’s well being that somehow lessened the menacing impact of the past Mindanao events that led the European influx to nose-dive by 15-20 percent.

“Because of the government’s support, the Department of Tourism (DOT) was able to come up with the CNN advertisement promoting various Philippine destinations. It did the industry good since we are getting positive feedback,” beamed Clemente.

Due to the trade slowdown, Clemente is stepping on his brakes concerning his company’s promotion abroad. “We had to cut back on trade shows and we have not gone to any for years now,” he said.

Though Rajah Travel still maintains its offices in Tokyo and San Francisco, certain company blitzes in Europe have been halted. It might take a while for some Europeans to shore up due to the upsetting Sipadan incident in the past, lamented Clemente.

However, Clemente noted a trickling of visitors from Germany and Spain. “Aside from that, the Northeast Asian countries are a thriving market. As for outbound destinations, Bangkok and Hong Kong are still very popular.”

The cruising market is picking up, too, Clemente related. Most popular among regular cruisers are the Mediterranean, European and North American destinations. “Since cruising here is still on a growing up stage, clients will most likely give preference to cheaper packages, and cruise-sellers will try to experiment with what’s easy to put on the market. “

The 31-year-old Rajah Travel is also the general sales agent (GSA) of Insight Vacations, the world-famous quality coach tours, especially to Europe and the Mediterranean.

On the home front, Clemente said Boracay, Palawan and Cebu are still the domestic top sellers. Up-and-coming destinations include Bohol for its beaches and nature, and Siargao’s Bais and Donsol for leisure, water sports and whale watching.

Since it’s already summer, Rajah Travel has been getting queries about the season’s most popular destinations like Baguio and Bicol, to name a few. This only proves, after all, that domestic tourism is still the one that infuses the industry with staying power.