The teeming metropolis of Manila was the host city for this year’s ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF), which attracted more than 2,620 delegates together with 175 local and international media. They soon discovered that the Philippines Tourism slogan of ‘It’s more fun in the Philippines’ lived up to its name.
The ATF is a co-operative regional initiative to promote the South-east Asian Nations region as a single tourist destination. It involves the 10 member destinations of ASEAN: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, LaoPDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. 
The Philippines has among the highest GDP growth rates in Asia.
“Visit Philippines Year (VPY) 2015 was a huge success,” said Susan del Mundo, Chairperson of the ATF-2016 Travex Subcommittee. “This year, with Visit the Philippines Again (VPA) 2016, we are confident that it will be another spectacular year for the tourism industry, not just with the help of the government and private sector, but also with the heart of the Filipino people. With the Filipinos as our most important asset, VPA 2016 will surely captivate tourists even more as they return this year. We believe that this year’s host committee has created ample opportunities for delegates to experience the appeal of The Philippines.”
The ASEAN Tourism Forum was officially opened by H.E. Benigno Simeon Aquino III, the President of the Philippines, and was followed by a gala dinner for all the delegates.
