Following the successful Philippine tourism campaign in 2015 dubbed as ‘Visit the Philippines 2015', the Department of Tourism has launched another campaign, ‘Visit the Philippines Again 2016' (VPA 2016) to further increase Philippine tourism to the international and local community. Department of Tourism Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez, Jr. launched the campaign again on Nov. 3 during the World Travel Market 2015 held in The Gherkin in London. The campaign aims to attract more visitors from all over the world to the Philippines and encourage them to return for more fun and feel-good adventures in 2016. To kick-off the campaign, the Philippines is hosting the ASEAN Tourism Forum on Jan. 18-25 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay. In addition, other exciting activities are also planned for the international travelers such as: hosting of exclusive events including Madrid Fusion Manila 2016 in April for foodies, the MTV Music Evolution 2016 in May for music-lovers and the 2016 Ironman 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship in August for sports and outdoor enthusiasts. In line with the VPA 2016 campaign, returning visitors will also be given exclusive travel deals and special incentives such as special discounts on flights, hotel accommodation and tour packages to inspire them to return to the Philippines. Visitors just need to present proof of previous visits to the Philippines. As of October 2015, the Department of Tourism has recorded a total of 4,226,489 international tourist arrivals to the Philippines from January to October 2015. The figure is an 11.13% increase from the same period of the previous year. Visitors from Saudi Arabia were recorded at 44,339 from January to October 2015,the highest number of visitors from the Middle East. 2nd EOW goes to Al Khafji this year The Philippine Embassy in Riyadh visited Al Khafji on Jan. 15-16 for its 2nd Embassy on Wheels (EOW) consular outreach mission this year. It was held at the Al Yamama Esteraha, Al Khafji. Led by Consul General Iric C. Arribas together with the 6-member EOW team, the outreach mission provided a total of 114 consular services, including 88 passport renewals, 5 notarials and 1 report of birth. In addition 20 new e-passports were also released. The next consular outreach mission will be on Jan. 29-30 at the Al Majd (former Al Jazeera) International School Al Khobar, Eastern Province.
