Marcos meets Japanese tourism partners on 2nd day of Japan trip

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with Japanese tourism partners on Friday, the second day of his working visit to Japan, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said.

The attendees included key tourism stakeholders who have contributed to the growth and promotion of Philippine tourism in the Japanese market, the PCO said in the caption of a short video clip posted on its social media account.

READ: Marcos heads to Japan for World Expo, business meetings

Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco, who was present at the event, said Marcos spoke with travel and tourism stakeholders about his administration’s prioritization of tourism, particularly through infrastructure improvements such as airports.

“This was received very well by our Japanese stakeholders, especially considering that our data shows that Japanese travelers favor Cebu, Palawan, Boracay, and Bohol and are also very interested in other emerging island destinations across the country,” Frasco said in an interview with Radio-Television Malacañang (RTVM).

“The President has also given his assurances of our government's continued prioritization of connectivity, apart from having constructed and expanded over 700 kilometers of tourism roads across the country, which have been the aggressive efforts towards recovering our flights coming into the Philippines,” she added.

Meanwhile, Philippine Ambassador to Japan Mylene Garcia-Albano said in a separate RTVM interview that Marcos wanted to express his appreciation to everyone involved in the creation of the Philippine Pavilion for World Expo Osaka 2025.

Marcos departed for Osaka, Japan, on Thursday afternoon to attend the World Expo 2025, hold business meetings, and meet with the Filipino community.

In his absence, Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, Agrarian Reform Secretary Conrado Estrella III, and Education Secretary Sonny Angara serve as the country’s caretakers.

Marcos is expected to return to the Philippines over the weekend, according to Palace Press Officer Claire Castro./mcm