The Philippines is banking on its Asean chairmanship to elevate the country’s tourism through “warmth and authenticity”, despite facing accessibility hurdles and stiff competition from holiday heavyweights such as Thailand and Indonesia.

Famous for its white-sand beaches, the archipelagic state drew just 2.1 million of the 48.5 million tourist arrivals recorded by countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in the first four months of this year.

The Philippines received 5.9 million visitors in 2024, falling short of its 7.7 million target, data from travel intelligence firm Outbox Company showed. Malaysia and Thailand led the region at 13.4 million and 12.09 million, respectively.

To reverse that trend and catch up with its rivals, Manila is “tailoring our interventions to ensure the Philippines is the top-of-mind choice for our increasingly affluent regional neighbours”, Department of Tourism spokeswoman Ina Zara-Loyola told local media this week.

The government is also “actively in talks” with the Filipino girl group BINI to boost the country’s tourism appeal among the 11-member bloc, which the World Economic Forum projected would become the world’s fourth-largest economy.

Tourism Congress of the Philippines president James Montenegro said the country’s competitive edge over other Asean destinations lies in offering “warmth, service, authenticity and human engagement”.