Metro Manila, Philippines – The Department of Tourism (DOT) and travel platform Klook are expanding efforts to draw travelers beyond established tourist hotspots, with a renewed partnership aimed at promoting lesser-known destinations across the country.
Both sides signed a new multi-year memorandum of understanding on Tuesday, Sept. 1, covering tourism marketing, destination development and efforts to bring more local tourism businesses onto digital booking platforms.
The two sides will develop and promote curated experiences in emerging destinations, working with DOT regional offices, local communities and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
Tourism Secretary Dita Angara-Mathay said the government wants local tourism operators, particularly those in the provinces, to benefit more directly from the growth of digital travel.
“As we continue to expand our partnership with Klook, we are placing greater emphasis on the participation of our tourism stakeholders,” Angara-Mathay said.
“We want to ensure that our experience providers, particularly MSMEs in the provinces, are equipped to participate meaningfully in the digital tourism ecosystem,” she added.
The partnership seeks to make provincial attractions and activities more visible and directly bookable by travelers, potentially giving smaller operators access to customers beyond their traditional markets.
Bringing local experiences to global travelers
The partnership will also use Klook’s international reach to market Philippine destinations to foreign travelers through campaigns, including “Discover More to Love.”
Klook Philippines general manager Michelle Ho said the partnership aims to bring more locally operated experiences to domestic and international travelers.
“By supporting and empowering local merchants, we aren’t just making unique, authentic Filipino experiences more accessible, but are ultimately positioning the Philippines as a top-of-mind destination for travelers domestically and worldwide,” Ho said.
DOT regional offices will work with local operators on destination branding and tourism product development, while Klook will provide a digital channel through which participating experiences can reach travelers.
The government is seeking to spread tourism activity beyond established go-to places such as Boracay, Palawan, and Cebu and encourage visitors to explore emerging destinations.
The DOT and Klook have yet to identify in the announcement the specific new destinations that will be prioritized or provide a target number of provincial tourism businesses expected to join the program.
