By Filane Mikee Cervantes/PNA
MANILA — Senator Sonny Angara on Wednesday urged the Department of Tourism (DOT) to use “storytelling” as a key marketing strategy to attract more tourists to the Philippines.
In a statement, Angara said the DOT should come up with a master plan using narratives that portray the “rich cultural heritage” of the country’s various tourist destinations.
“Storytelling is a great way of inspiring tourists to explore new things, activities and experiences in the Philippines, which is without a doubt a beautiful and unique country with so many great attractions,” he said.
Angara, sponsor of the DOT budget, said the Philippines continues to lag behind its neighbors in Southeast Asia in terms of tourist arrivals, citing the lack of narrative as a possible reason for this.
According to the World Bank, the Philippines only had 5.361 million foreign tourist arrivals in 2017 compared to Thailand’s 29.923 million; Malaysia’s 25.721 million; Singapore’s 12.051 million; Indonesia’s 10.407 million; and Vietnam’s 7.944 million.
“Compared to Bali, our own Boracay and other lesser known beaches in the country like those in my home province of Aurora are far more beautiful. However, it seems that we lack stories that tell so,” Angara said, noting that Indonesia’s marketing promotions tell compelling stories that drive tourist traffic.
“We expect the DOT to come up with a powerful, believable and interesting story about the country and its destinations to encourage more foreign tourists to visit the Philippines,” he said.
