Tourist influx to fuel hotel industry boom
2017.07.08
Real estate consultancy firm Colliers International expects the local hotel industry to boom this year in line with the expected surge in foreign tourist arrivals in the country.
Colliers said it sees at least 6.6 million foreign tourists visiting the country this year, 10 percent more than the 5.97 million recorded in 2016.
The firm's forecast, however, is lower than the government's projection of a 17 percent year-on-year growth or seven million foreign visitors for 2017.
“The growth of the Philippine tourism sector will be sustained by the influx of visitors from the country's traditional markets such as South Korea, USA, Japan and China. The four economies account for nearly 60 percent of annual tourist arrivals in the country,” Colliers said.
Colliers said the warming relations between the China and Philippines should like- wise result in more Chinese tourists, with an agreement on tourism cooperation signed between the Philippine and Chinese governments last year expected to bear fruit in the next six to 12 months.
In addition, it said the tourism sector should benefit from the spillover impact of the successful hosting of major international events the past two years such as APEC Summit, ASEAN Tourism Forum, Routes Asia and Miss Universe pageant.
“The successful staging of these events only affirm the Philippines' viability
as a key meetings, incentives,
conferences and exhibitions
destination in the region,”
Colliers said.
These developments bode well for the country's hotel industry, the property consultancy firm noted.
With robust international arrivals and sustained rise in visitor receipts, Colliers said hotel occupancy in Metro Manila increased two percentage points from 69 percent in the first half last year to 71 per- cent by end-2016.
“Outlook for Philippine tourism remains bullish and this encourages hotel developers to ramp up construction of accommodation facilities throughout the country,” said Chris Wells, Colliers consultant for hotels and leisure services.
Colliers expects the addition of more than 4,000 rooms to Metro Manila's hotel room stock this year.
“Despite the projected completion of a significant number of new hotel rooms, Colliers sees occupancy rates in Metro Manila hovering between 65 percent and 70 percent over the next 12 months,” Wells said.
Source:http://www.philstar.com/business/2017/04/13/1690225/tourist-influx-fuel-hotel-industry-boom
