New tourism campaign kicks off

THE DEPARTMENT of Tourism (DOT) and Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines unveiled a new campaign and released a video designed to welcome domestic tourists back to the country’s tourism destinations.

Dubbed as “It’s More Fun with You,” the video is part of the DOT domestic tourism campaign called “Have A Safe Trip, Pinas.” The video is aptly scored with Rivermaya’s 1997 hit single “Hinahanap-Hanap Kita” to illustrate the desire and excitement of local tourism destinations to welcome back their guests. It features a surfing dog named Tuna, who is unable to contain his excitement as he welcomes a friend back to the beach after a long absence. 

It’s More Fun with You, as the main messaging of this domestic tourism welcome back campaign, encourages Filipinos to travel and explore the country again after a long hiatus due to pandemic-related travel restrictions. The campaign also supports recovery initiatives and efforts of the tourism industry. 

“Our latest ad highlights the joy of reuniting with loved ones and traveling with them to their favorite places, or visiting new spots where more memories will be made. It’s more fun in the Philippines and it’ll even be more fun with you,” said DOT Secretary Berna Puyat.

The DOT and TPB also launched the “Have a Safe Trip, Pinas” stickers that can be downloaded on Viber (https://bit.ly/HaveASafeTripPinas) and were created exclusively for this campaign. The first of two categories of the stickers remind the public and travelers of the basic health and safety protocols. The other encourages safe and fun travel to domestic destinations. Popular Filipino food stickers are also featured as a bonus. 

“With health and safety protocols in place, we can look forward to opening more tourism destinations in time for the holidays, and shift recovery into high gear,” Puyat said.

She also encouraged domestic tourists to discover and plan their travel and receive the latest updates and travel advisories about the Philippines by downloading the Travel Philippines mobile application through Google Play and Apple Store. (With additional reporting from Malou Cablinda.)