CEBU CITY – The province of Cebu recorded a 10 percent decline in tourist arrivals in the first six months of this year.

The Cebu Provincial Tourism Office (CPTO) on Friday, July 31, reported that the province logged 838,601 tourist arrivals from January to June this year, down 10.69 percent from the 938,945 in the same period last year.

Despite the year-on-year decline, Provincial Tourism Officer Rowena Montecillo remained optimistic that tourist arrivals in the province will recover before the year ends.

Montecillo said the expected influx of domestic travelers during the peak tourism season could spark recovery.

"Although both domestic and foreign arrivals remain negative compared with the same period last year, the foreign numbers have somehow increased a little from last week's report," Montecillo told reporters.

Montecillo said the province banks on domestic tourists. “They come during peak season," she said.

Data showed that domestic arrivals dropped to 684,210 from 784,022 last year, while foreign arrivals fell to 153,391 from 161,907 in 2025.

South Korea is still Cebu’s biggest foreign source market with 45,913, followed by Japan with 19,040, the United States with 18,680, China with 15,080, Taiwan with 7,907, Germany with 6,266, Australia with 6,175, France with 6,056, Canada with 5,596, and the United Kingdom with 4,301.

Montecillo said the province continues to strengthen destination readiness by rolling out 30 training programs for tourism workers, including rescue and emergency response, to improve visitor services.

She clarified that data from January to June remain incomplete pending submission reports by some municipalities.