The Philippines on Thursday began admitting foreign visitors who have been vaccinated against Covid-19 and test negative for the virus no more than 48 hours before arrival.
Tourists from about 150 countries and territories will be allowed to visit the Philippines visa-free — including Australia, Japan, UK and US — for the first time in nearly two years.
Officials said the reopening would revive jobs and businesses that relied on tourism.
The Department of Tourism said foreign tourists planning to visit the Philippines should “prepare all entry requirements for seamless travel”.
“While the country has opened its borders to fully vaccinated business and leisure visitors, it is doing so with utmost care and with full regard for the health and safety of visitors and the public,” Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said.
The Philippines hosted 8.3 million foreign visitors in 2019, the last year before it reported its first Covid-19 cases. South Korea, China and the US are the country’s largest sources of foreign visitors.
In November, Thailand began admitting foreign tourists under a strict testing regimen, which it paused in December after the discovery of the virus’s Omicron variant, before resuming it on February 1.
Vietnam has said it plans to reopen to international tourists in March or April.
- George Russell
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