Travel expo draws large crowd as tour agencies offer cheap rates
ONE of the Philippines’ most popular travel trade shows, Travel Tour Expo (TTE), has closed its curtains after three days of long lines which snaked the whole perimeter of the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City, as people hoped to score the best travel deals offered by some 300 exhibitors.
The show which ran from Feb. 5-7, now on its 23rd year, said that last year’s participants numbered over a 100,000, a turnout that they claimed, has been surpassed this year.
“We don’t want to say numbers, it just comes. Every year it increases,” said Michelle R. Victoria, president of the Philippine Travel Agency Association (PTAA), the organizers of the expo during the opening ceremonies on Feb. 5 at the SMX in Pasay city.
“[We’re confident] because all the airlines and all the travel agencies are really giving better rates than last year,” she noted.
While last year’s iteration had more exhibitors (last year reported an estimated 334 exhibitors while this year was at 306, according to its official website as of Jan. 11), Ms. Victoria explained that the drop was due to some exhibitors occupying larger spaces because “they have discovered how profitable [the expo] is”.
Some of the largest booths are occupied by Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific, easily using up 1,000 sq.m of floor space each. Both airlines, as usual in this events, have the longest lines as people vye for airline ticket bargains.
Last year’s receipts were pegged at P500 million, according to Domingo Ramon C. Enerio III, COO of the Tourism Promotions Board, during his opening speech, thus proving his earlier statement during the opening of the expo that “travel is no longer an extravagance” as it has now been “an essential aspect of many people’s lives.”
Ms. Victoria noted that the last year’s biggest winners were the airlines. She estimated the revenues by the country’s flagship carrier at P300 million. She added this is a trend they see continuing as prospective travellers usually go for it first before looking for accommodation and other activities.
This year, she said the usual local destinations such as Cebu, Bohol and Palawan are still the most popular, while US, Europe and Japan are the hottest outbound destinations.
“Other exhibitors are introducing new destinations. Although the destinations have already been there, they’re just promoting it more now,” she said.
Some of the deals that were offered during the expo were a $80 Guam flight package and a P600 deal for Cebu.
Ms. Victoria added that with the expo now occupying the two floors of the convention center, more participants were expected as local and international sellers were present during the concurrent International Travel Trade Expo (iTTE).
Unlike the TTE which focused on business-to-consumer deals, the inaugural iTTE focused on the business-to-business deals, which aimed to “link the growing Philippine market to overseas travel”, according to a company press release.
“The TTE has evolved so we would like to innovate more,” Ms. Victoria said of the iTTE.
The Philippines has recently hit 5.36 million foreign tourist arrivals in 2015 a 10.91% increase from 2014, generating a revenue in excess of $ 5 billion. Current targets are set 6 million.
“Things are looking brighter for the Philippines as optimistic projections envision as much as 6 million foreign travelers visiting the country by year-end of 2016,” Mr. Enerio said in his speech. — Zsarlene B. Chua
