Asia's leading beach destination sees decline in Q1 foreign arrivals

By Hoang Vu April 7, 2025 | 06:57 pm PT

A fire dancer performs for tourists on Boracay Island, Aklan province, Philippines, Dec. 1, 2021. Photo by Reuters

The number of foreign visitors to the Philippines fell by 0.51% in the first quarter of this year to 1.65 million, with key markets such as South Korea and China experiencing significant declines.

South Korea remained the largest source of inbound visitors during the period, with 395,059 arrivals, a 13.9% year-on-year drop, followed by the U.S. with 285,597, and Japan with 125,083, according to data from the Department of Tourism.

Arrivals from China continued their sharp decline, plunging 33.7% to 72,665, making it the sixth-largest source market.

Among other key markets, arrivals from Japan, Australia, Canada, and Singapore saw year-on-year growth.

The Philippines, voted "Asia's leading beach destination" at the 2024 World Travel Awards, targets 8.4 million foreign tourists this year, up more than 55% from last year's 5.4 million arrivals.