Philippine travelers are responding to the Middle East war by prioritizing intra-regional trips, helping keep the tourism industry resilient despite the challenges created by the worsening security situation along the Persian Gulf, the Department of Tourism (DoT) said.

Tourism Undersecretary Verna Esmeralda C. Buensuceso said the fighting in the Middle East has affected tourism by redirecting travel flows and increasing operating costs. The conflict has disrupted key aviation corridors and driven up fuel prices, adding pressure to airline margins that has rippled into higher ticket prices for routes touching the region. However, she said the move toward “nearshore” travel has helped offset the decline in long-haul trips.

“I think our ASEAN member states have really applied the hard-earned, hard-learned lessons from the pandemic directly into tourism policy,” Ms. Buensuceso said during an Asian Development Bank webinar on Thursday. “And looking at how we have now addressed some of the realities of the Middle East situation, we have actually established quick-response mechanisms and agility frameworks that allow destinations to pivot.”

“For example, when the recent conflict broke out, we also saw that many shifted immediately to focus on nearshore and intra-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) regional markets,” she added.

The shift is facilitated in part by visa-free or visa-on-arrangement access that ASEAN nationals enjoy across most member states, making short-haul regional travel more practical for Filipinos rerouting plans away from the Gulf and beyond.

Ms. Buensuceso said the Philippine government has continued promoting domestic tourism as part of efforts to support business continuity in the sector.

She said international tourist arrivals across ASEAN reached 92% of pre-pandemic levels in mid-2025, generating regional domestic income of $132 billion.

In 2025, Philippine tourism generated P2.27 trillion in direct gross value added, based on preliminary estimates from the Philippine Statistics Authority. The sector’s contribution to gross domestic product declined to a three-year low of 8.1% last year from 8.7% in 2024.

Ms. Buensuceso said spending of about P3.26 trillion places the Philippines among ASEAN’s largest domestic tourism markets.

“This strong domestic market has actually helped sustain the sector’s economic contribution and employment, demonstrating how a diversified tourism base can also strengthen resilience amid external uncertainties,” she said.

She also said the government needs to improve infrastructure to further strengthen domestic tourism.

“In an archipelago like the Philippines with 7,641 islands, many of our emerging tourism destinations possess rich natural and cultural assets, but they lack the basic infrastructure needed to support sustainable tourism,” Ms. Buensuceso said.

“And so improving connectivity, utilities, public services in these areas really require close coordination across national and local governments, as well as across, of course, sectors such as transport, public works, environment, and digital infrastructure,” she added.

How effectively the government can close those infrastructure gaps will shape whether the Philippines can translate near-term resilience into sustained tourism growth, particularly as competition for intra-ASEAN travelers intensifies among neighboring countries pursuing similar strategies.

— Katherine K. Chan