PH supports Asean thrust to woo next-gen tourists – Tourism chief
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2020 17:46:33 +0000
SUSTAINABLE tourism continues to be the game plan of the Department of Tourism as it supports the ten-nation strong cooperation of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) to attract next-generation travelers.
Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat made the assertion as she leads the Philippine delegation in this year’s Asean Tourism Forum 2020.
Aptly themed “Asean: Together Towards a Next Generation of Travel,” this year’s forum aims to keep abreast of the dynamics and demands of changing travel patterns, demographics, behavior and preferences.
“The Philippines is keeping in step with the rest of the world’s technological advancements to capture the new breed of tourists while remaining committed to its core values of promoting sustainable and responsible tourism,” the tourism chief said.
Puyat likewise remarked that the Tourism department has partnered with private organizations and the academe – including navigation application Waze, scooter rental services GrabWheels and social media video application TikTok — to capture phenomenal global urbanization, new eloquence and technological advancements that are driving the new breed of tourists.
“Carbon offsetting, reduction of single-use plastics, wellness vacations and green hotels are among this year’s travel trends that perfectly align with the country’s sustainable tourism direction as well the Asean’s next-gen travelers that are tech-savvy and environmentally conscious,” Secretary Puyat added.
Headlined by this year’s Asean 2020 Tourism Standards Awards for Asean Green Hotel awardees, the Philippines also moves towards green energy production, proper recycling and procurement of locally grown, organic food.