Agoda and Philippine tourism authorities launch joint travel marketing push

Digital travel platform Agoda has entered into a strategic partnership with the Philippines’ tourism authorities, as the company deepens its involvement in destination marketing, workforce development, and sustainable tourism initiatives across the country.

The collaboration between Agoda and the department of tourism (DOT) will centre on joint marketing campaigns designed to promote travel to the Philippines, while also supporting industry capability-building and data-driven tourism strategies.

Beyond destination marketing, the partnership will include training programmes and workshops covering digital transformation, service excellence, and tourism industry best practices. Both parties also said they would work together on sustainability-focused awareness initiatives and knowledge-sharing efforts.

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Damien Pfirsch, chief commercial officer at Agoda, said the collaboration reflects a broader ambition to strengthen the country’s tourism ecosystem.

“Agoda is proud to partner with the DOT to encourage inbound travel, collaborate on training and development programmes, and support growth across the many incredible tourist destinations in the Philippines. By combining the DOT’s leadership with Agoda’s expertise, we will entice more travellers to visit the Philippines while elevating the tourism industry as a whole,” he said.

This comes as the Philippine tourism industry has been facing a slower recovery, with tourism’s contribution to GDP falling to 8.1% in 2025 from 8.7% a year earlier, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.

The decline was largely driven by a 6.4% drop in inbound tourism spending, highlighting ongoing challenges in attracting higher foreign visitor expenditure despite continued growth in domestic travel.

Industry observers also pointed to the need for stronger digitalisation, better connectivity, diversified tourism offerings, and more resilient long-term tourism strategies as the sector navigates global economic uncertainty and intensifying regional competition.

The latest partnership also signals a shared focus on positioning the Philippines as a safe, accessible, and welcoming destination for both domestic and international travellers.

Through Agoda’s global network spanning accommodation, flights, and activities, alongside the DOT’s destination management initiatives, the collaboration aims to deliver practical support for tourism businesses, strengthen workforce readiness, and improve traveller confidence.

For Agoda, the agreement further reinforces its positioning beyond bookings and into broader tourism ecosystem partnerships with government stakeholders.

Previously, Agoda partnered with the DOT to launch the inaugural edition of Agoda’s executive masterclass platform in Manila, themed “Leadership for resilience”. The programme gathered tourism officials, hotel associations, and hospitality partners across the Philippines, focusing on technology adoption, capacity building, and inclusive tourism growth.

In 2024, Agoda partnered with the tourism promotions board Philippines (TPB) on a joint international travel marketing campaign aimed at boosting inbound tourism and strengthening the Philippines’ global destination appeal.

Running through December 2024 for travel periods until March 2025, the collaboration combined co-branded campaigns, exclusive discounts, and digital promotions across Agoda’s platforms and the Travel Philippines app to spotlight both major and emerging destinations across the country.

The initiative built on Agoda’s broader support for the Philippine tourism sector, including past sustainability programmes and pandemic-era initiatives. In 2021, Agoda said it became the first digital travel platform to roll out quarantine packages to support returning Filipinos during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Step into PR Asia Philippines 2026 on 9 September in Manila, where communications leaders will unpack the realities of trust, nationalism, misinformation, and polarisation shaping the country’s evolving narrative landscape.

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