International visitor arrivals to the Philippines increased by 7.51 percent in the first five months of 2026, supported by strong growth from China, India and other key source markets, according to data from the Department of Tourism (DOT).
The DOT reported that total visitor arrivals, including overseas Filipinos, reached 2.74 million from January to May 2026, up from 2.55 million in the same period last year.
Top Source Markets
The United States became the country’s largest source market, accounting for 531,859 arrivals, representing 19.4 percent of the total visitor volume. Arrivals from the U.S. rose 7.07 percent from a year earlier.
South Korea, traditionally the Philippines’ top tourism market, ranked second with 501,789 visitors. However, Korean arrivals declined 9.56 percent from the 554,855 recorded in the first five months of 2025.
Japan placed third with 226,494 arrivals, posting a 6.88 percent increase year-on-year.
Strong Growth from China and India
One of the strongest growth performances came from China, where arrivals surged 62.79 percent to 187,478 visitors from 115,163 a year ago. The sharp increase signals a continued recovery of outbound travel from the Chinese market.
India emerged as one of the fastest-growing markets, with arrivals climbing 47.24 percent to 52,257 from 35,492 in the same period last year.
Other Key Markets
Other major source markets also posted gains. Canada recorded 166,178 arrivals, up 17.13 percent, while Australia contributed 166,036 visitors, an increase of 12.83 percent.
Arrivals from Taiwan rose 12.22 percent to 96,655, while the United Kingdom registered a modest 1.89 percent growth to 90,863 visitors.
Meanwhile, Singapore remained relatively flat, with arrivals edging up 0.07 percent to 80,436.
