DAVAO CITY — Foreigners heading to the Philippines might think of Cebu or Boracay for their sandy beaches, or Manila for business. But another region in the archipelago is hoping to be the next big destination for travellers.
In 2019, prior to the pandemic, some 4.2 visitors passed through Davao International Airport, including 2.5 million tourists. The rest were transit travellers. In March, it hosted an annual Mice Conference, a domestic event which brought together some 500 professionals from the Mice sector. The upgrading work at the airport, the third busiest in the country, will start in June and is expected to be completed in 2025.
Island Garden City of Samal is already seeing an influx of domestic tourists due to"revenge travel" in the wake of the pandemic easing, with queues of up to an hour for a boat during popular weekends a norm. The streets of Davao City are clean of litter, with strict rules against littering and spitting put in place.
“We’re a safe place, the roads are clean and the buildings are improving. It should draw more tourists from overseas and that will hopefully pick up business even more,” said 24-year-old Hasan Abangon, the fourth-generation owner of D’landap Gift Shop.