Little Things Count A Lot

Maybe it’s because of the new tourism slogan “It’s more fun in the Philippines.” Or maybe we’re benefiting from the healthy growth of the travel industry in the region.

Either way, tourist arrivals in the Philippines breached the four-million mark for the first time in 2012, when a total of 4.27 million foreign travelers visited us. Of course, the number was still short of the 4.56-million target for the year, although it represented a 9.5-percent increase from 3.9 million in 2011.

This year, I understand, the target is 5.5 million tourist arrivals. By 2016, the goal is to reach the 10-million mark. We’re doing well – compared to ourselves. I’m reluctant to say the same – compared to our neighbors. Vietnam, for example, has already left us. Tourist arrivals in Vietnam declined by 6.26 percent in December compared to November, but the total for the whole of 2012 still exceeded 6.8 million, up 13 percent from 2011.

We’re still ahead of Cambodia, which received 3.5 million visitors in 2012, for a healthy 25 percent growth over 2011. If Cambodia repeats that performance, it will have more than 4.3 million visitors this year. I wonder how long we can keep our lead. Then, we have Myanmar, which is now opening up its market. According to news reports, tourist arrivals in Myanmar exceeded one million in 2012, also representing a 25 percent growth from 2011.

Our peers in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), however, have gone ahead of us. Malaysia is now listed by the United Nations World Trade Organization (UNWTO) among the world’s top 10 tourism destinations in terms of tourist arrivals, which totaled 24.7 million in 2012. Thailand posted a record high in tourist arrivals last year, which reached 22.3 million, up 16 percent from 2011. Only Indonesia posted a single-digit growth in tourist arrivals last year: 8.04 million, up 5 percent from 7.65 million in 2011. This year, Indonesia is targeting nine million visitors.

Looking at the performance of our neighbors, I am inclined to believe that we’re still out of the loop of big travel groups. It seems that travelers are still reluctant to spend their vacation in the Philippines.

Reaching the 10-million mark in tourist arrivals is not impossible, but it is a tough assignment because we’re still suffering from an accumulation of errors, specifically the many years of neglect in building infrastructure systems. The government is now bent on clearing the backlog on infrastructure, but it will take time to reach the level that will really make us a major player in the tourism industry.

Infrastructure development is long and expensive, but other obstacles to tourism growth can be cleared within a shorter period of time and with modest funding. These include peace and order and sanitation.

Consider this: many Metro Manila residents will be reluctant to travel to the provinces which have been featured in the news as hotbeds of insurgency, or in places that have been reported as scenes of robbery and other crimes.

If we Filipinos are afraid to travel to such places, how do we expect foreigners to do so?

Next: more than a few times in our life, we found ourselves in a situation that we really needed to relieve ourselves, but could not find a clean and comfortable “comfort room,” or toilet, to be blunt about it. Everybody will agree with me that this is a huge issue, especially for women.

I believe that solving these problems will satisfy the needs of many travelers, even while we wait for the completion of infrastructure projects. However, solving the problem is just one side of the coin. The other side is changing the impression. Also because of neglect in the past, we still suffer from stigma. For example, recent reports listed the Ninoy Aquino International Airport among the worst airports in the world. The ranking was based on complaints among travelers, including safety concerns and lack of facilities.

Good slogans are effective in catching attention or fueling interest, but we cannot assume that competition for tourists is only about slogans. We have to do more. The ongoing construction of hotels and resorts will help, and so will the government’s infrastructure program. We should also pay attention to the little things, like comfortable and clean comfort rooms.

Tourists who are able to relieve themselves comfortably, with no fear of picking up germs, will be our most effective agents.  Believe me, building up a reputation as a country with the cleanest, most comfortable comfort rooms may be a major factor in reaching out 10-million tourist arrival goal.

Sourced: mb.com.ph