Cordillera hosts 1.98 million guests in 2024
BAGUIO CITY—French visitors led the foreign guests who visited the mountainous Cordillera in 2024, counted to be among the 1.983 million tourists who traveled to the summer capital and top highland attractions like the rice terraces in Ifugao and the caves of Sagada town in Mountain Province, according to the Department of Tourism (DOT).
Last year’s tourist tally reflects a 17 percent rise from the 1.685 million tourists in 2023, said Jovita Ganongan, DOT Cordillera director, during a March 12 “Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas” media forum here.
The 2024 visitors spent an estimated P10.4 billion during their trips, Ganongan said.
She said booking records showed 8,829 French nationals toured the highlands last year, along with 5,325 Americans and 4,706 Germans, suggesting that more European travelers have been curious about the region’s indigenous culture.
Most of the 2024 tourists (1.560 million) traveled and stayed in Baguio last year, up from the city’s 1.309 million guests in 2023 and 1.043 million in 2022.
However, during a Baguio traffic and transport summit on March 20, Mayor Benjamin Magalong said the city has calculated that it may have hosted as many as 2 million guests, including families who motor up for a day, spend time in the parks or shopping malls and then leave, so they were not reflected in hotel room bookings.
Magalong said this could be gauged from the volume of traffic, the recorded waste build up and crowding that Baguio has been experiencing as it bounced back after the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered the economy in 2020 and 2021.
DOT and the city’s tourism operations office require accommodation facilities to submit periodic booking reports.
Cordillera attractions
Next to Baguio, Mountain Province with its rich landscapes drew the second largest number of visitors last year with 151,183 travelers (up from 142,219 guests in 2023 and 62,094 in 2022). Kalinga province, and the City of Tabuk, recorded the third highest number of tourists with 132,771 travelers in 2024 (an increase from 118,472 guests in 2023 and 143,426 visitors in 2022).
DOT has been evaluating 17 Cordillera attractions for possible financing and upgrades to draw more travelers.
Among these potential destinations are Mt. Al-al in Benguet’s Kabayan town, which is also straddled by the popular trekking icon, Mt. Pulag, the highest peak in Luzon.
Also subjected to DOT’s rapid site assessment are the Naumag waterfalls, the Itab viewpoint and campsite, the Pandayan village of Aquinaldo town in Ifugao, the Kalipkip-Busilac Ecotourism Park, the birdwatching site near the Magat and Maris Dams; and indigenous wines of Alfonso Lista town, also in Ifugao.
In Mountain Province, DOT is evaluating seven destinations: Lake Tufob, the Mornang Hot Springs and Waterfall and Reaper Farm in Barlig town; the Mabaro’bot Mudpool of Paracelis town, and the Batacang Adventure Park and Napua Agri-Tourism Village of Sabangan town.
Also being studied are the Gololan Falls, the Apayao River and Barangay Dagara in Apayao province.
From 2012 to 2024, the government has spent over P11,479 billion in tourism roads across the Cordillera, or 376.330 kilometers of access roads to areas frequented by travelers, Ganongan said.
