DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/ 22 January) – Davao City attracted some 2.39 million tourists in 2018, surpassing by 18.92% the record of 2 million visitors in 2017, data from the City Tourism Office (CTO) released on Tuesday showed.
Tourism Office head Generose Tecson said domestic visitors comprised at least 89% of the total tourist arrivals.
She said they are optimistic they can surpass the 2018 record as the city will host big conventions in the first semester and regional, national, and international sports events such as Davao Regional Athletic Association (DAVRAA) Meet 2019 from January 27 to February 2, Palarong Pambansa in April, and Ironman 70.3 on March 24.
The CTO also recorded 21,324 American visitors, the highest among all foreign visitors. The Japanese (12,800) came in second and Chinese (10,827) at third.
It added there were 8,936 Korean visitors, 7,117 Australians, 6,509 Indians, 5,392 Canadians, 4,985 Singaporeans, 4,287 British, 2,703 Emiratis, 2,449 Malaysians, 2,398 Germans, 2,338 Thais, 2,242 Saudia Arabians, and 1,868 Taiwanese.
Tecson said she will meet with local tour operators to shore up the number of Chinese visitors in the city after the launch of Davao-Hong Kong flight of Cathay Dragon on October 28 and Davao-Quanzhou flight on December 18.
“We do hope our international arrivals will increase,” she said. (Antonio L. Colina IV/MindaNews)