By Dave Romano
Last October 16 the Department of Tourism (DOT) and the Philippine Hotel Owners Association (PHOA) launched the first Philippine Hotel Industry Strategic Action Plan (PHISAP) 2023-2028 yesterday, October 16, at The Westin Manila in Pasig City.
The event brought together key stakeholders, including government agencies, industry associations, hotel operators, and other relevant parties, in order to gather essential input and insights through interviews, focus group discussions, and surveys.
The strategic development plan for the rollout ensures that options are evaluated to align with the industry’s objectives for the best chance of success. A specific focus is placed on meeting the projected room keys of 456,055 by 2028. Currently, the country has a total of 335,592 rooms, resulting in a reported room gap of 120,463.
As response to this demand, the 2024 Philippine Accommodation Pipeline Report, showed the commitment of Hotel Developers to the building of 40,084 room keys across 158 hotels in the Philippines, with an expected completion timeline of the next six to seven years. However, this still leaves a gap of over 80,000 rooms to be filled.
The PHISAP 2023-2028 is DOT’s attempt in getting more pledges of support in catching up with the demand for hotel rooms. It is a collaboration between the private sector to rise up to the challenge, and for DOT to provide the right incentives and accelerate the infrastructure to improve accessibilities leading to destinations.