MANILA, Philippines — Asian countries remained to be popular travel destinations among Filipinos this year, a travel search site said.
A travel trends report of Skyscanner, a growing global travel search site, listed top domestic and international destinations based on actual flight searches conducted on its travel website and mobile applications for 2013.
“The popularity of travel search engines such as Skyscanner makes flight search easier, possible, pocket-friendly, and convenient with just a click of a button,” said Janet Ranola, Skyscanner Philippines Manager.
This year revealed that among the top ten outbound summer destinations visited by Filipinos, five Asian destinations made it to the list which includes Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, Japan, and South Korea.
“The trends we saw this 2013 prove that Filipinos are becoming more reasonable yet adventurous travellers,” Ranola added.
The report showed that among the domestic destinations in the Philippines, Manila is on top of the list.
While Manila is still the most popular Philippine destination, Ranola said provinces and cities known for their pristine beaches made it to the top local destinations list as well. These are Cebu, Davao, Tacloban, Puerto Princesa, Iloilo, Kalibo, Bacolod, Tagbilaran, and Cagayan de Oro.
Meanwhile, Asian countries still dominate the outbound Christmas and New Year destinations which include Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, Japan, Malaysia, and South Korea.
In terms of city destinations, Singapore took the top spot followed by Hong Kong, Bangkok, Los Angeles, London, Kula Lumpur, Seoul, Tokyo, Dubai, and New York.
On the part of emerging outbound destinations, Norway is on top of the list.
Ranola said Norway, as an emerging outbound destination for Filipinos, came as a surprise.
She said this trend could happen because Filipinos love to experience snow and winter.
Based on actual flight searches, top outbound Holy Week destinations in 2013were also revealed. Singapore still topped the list followed by Hong Kong, United States, Japan, Thailand, South Korea, Australia, United Kingdom, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
“The results of our study show that travelling is already a part of the Filipino lifestyle,” Ranola said.
She expects an increase in the number of Filipinos booking and searching for top destinations and must-see places around the world in 2014.
