The Philippine Embassy in Dublin recently launched the country’s ‘It’s More Fun in the Philippines’ tourism campaign during the ‘Philippine Day’ in Phoenix Park. Philippine Day is an annual public event to celebrate Philippine Independence Day and attracts a crowd of 5,000. The day-long affair included a community parade, cultural presentations, live band performances, and children’s games.
Joy Quintana, Charge d’Affaires at the Embassy of the Philippines in Dublin, told Neil Steedman of Irish Travel Trade News that there are now some 17,000 Filipinos in the Republic of Ireland and up to 7,000 in Northern Ireland – which provides a strong base for VFR traffic on Dublin – Manila routes.
There are more than 7,100 islands in the Philippines, with major tourist islands including Cebu, Palawan, Boracay and Bohol.
The Philippines’ economy achieved growth of 6.4% in the first quarter of this year and the country’s President, Benigno Aquino, is aiming for a growth rate of 8% annually. Four new resorts with casinos are currently under construction in Manila and the CLSA investment bank predicts that gambling revenue in the Philippines will increase from €1 billion in 2011 to €2.4 billion in 2015.
