Panglao, Palawan cited by UK travel firms

MANILA, Philippines — Two tourist destinations in the Philippines were recently recognized by international travel firms in the United Kingdom.

Travel booking website Skyscanner in Edinburgh named the island of Panglao in Bohol as eighth out of 10 “trending destinations for 2025.”

Panglao, known as a beach and diving destination, “is emerging as another Asian wellness and wellbeing destination, and a great alternative to more familiar places in Europe,” according to Skyscanner.

The website noted it saw an increase of 77 percent in flight searches for travel to Panglao from January to June compared to the same period in 2023.

Reggio Calabria in Italy topped Skyscanner’s trending destinations for 2025, followed by Tartu in Estonia, Siem Reap in Cambodia, Baltimore in the United States, Portsmouth in Dominica, Córdoba in Spain, Tromsø in Norway, Panglao, Stuttgart in Germany and Thiruvananthapuram in Thailand.

Meanwhile, the province of Palawan was hailed as the 10th “Most Desirable Island in the World” in the Reader Travel Awards 2024 of London-based travel magazine Wanderlust.

Leading the said list was Sri Lanka, followed by Taiwan, Puerto Rico, Tobago, Tasmania in Australia, Bermuda, Cuba, Barbados, Madagascar and Palawan.

The list and other awards were a result of “three million votes cast by 168,000 passionate, globetrotting readers” of Wanderlust, according to the magazine.

The Department of Tourism (DOT) thanked Skyscanner and Wanderlust for the accolades given to Panglao and Palawan.

The recognitions were in time for the agency’s participation in the World Travel Market in London last week, where DOT Secretary Christina Garcia-Frasco discussed efforts to make Philippine tourism more technology-driven but still with a “human touch.”

She presented before global tourism stakeholders the Philippines’ Hop-on Hop-off bus tours that use a mobile application to enable easier booking and real-time tracking, the Travel Philippines mobile application, and the Tourist Assistance Call Center.

Despite advancements in tourism, Frasco pointed out that DOT is “very conscious to ensure that the human element of tourism is never lost in the Philippines, especially recognizing that Filipino hospitality is known worldwide and is the best asset of Philippine tourism.”

During the World Travel Market, described by Frasco as “one of the world’s biggest and most influential travel and tourism events,” the DOT presented “famed and world-renowned islands” and “emerging” tourist destinations including Palawan, Boracay, Cebu, Siargao, Batanes, Batangas, Bohol, Negros Oriental, Bicol, Bukidnon, Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur.