Team Out of Town Blog Hub (Outoftownblog.com) – LONDON, United Kingdom – Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco on Saturday (November 4-London time) engaged in a productive dialogue with some 60 representatives of the Filipino community during the Kapihan sa Pasuguan.
Jointly organized by the Philippine Embassy in London and the Philippines Department of Tourism (PDOT)-London, the Filcom members’ dialogue with
Secretary Frasco comes along the sidelines of the World Travel Market (WTM) London, where the Tourism Secretary will lead the contingent of Philippine tourism players.
The attendees, which come from different Filcom organizations, associations, and sectors including the academe, healthcare, MICE, real estate, travel, and tours, among others, were given an opportunity to share their travel and tourism-related insights with Secretary Frasco.
The most common topics that were derived from the discussions are the Filcom members’ appeals for the resumption of direct flights between Manila and London, ensuring the sustainability and security in Philippine destinations, and the need to address existing issues and impending threats to tourists such as the following: difficulties in complying with entry requirements; need for clean restrooms; scams; and data privacy concerns.
As Secretary Frasco thanked the Filcom members for all of their inputs during the forum and their contributions to maintaining the strong presence of the Philippines in London and the United Kingdom, she likewise assured the DOT’s consideration of their suggestions in its upcoming plans and programs.
In terms of the attendees’ appeal for the resumption of direct flights between Manila and London, Tourism Secretary shared updates on the DOT’s ongoing efforts to coordinate with airlines including Philippine Airlines (PAL) and advocate for the same.
“What I can assure you is that the effort will continue,” said Secretary Frasco, noting some of the positive outcomes of the DOT’s engagement with PAL, including the airline’s mounting of flights from Bangkok to Cebu, and Baguio to Cebu starting December.
To address the concerns over the growing number of reports of scams against tourists, Secretary Frasco gave the Filipino Community in London an overview of the Tourist Assistance Call Center that the DOT will soon launch in order to address the concerns of tourists while…
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