Tourism and Hospitality Industry News Updates brought to you by MY RANGGO for the week ending 14 November 2025.
- Emergency Rehabilitation Funds Released For Areas Devastated by Typhoon Uwan
- Philippines To Host 2026 UN Tourism World Gastronomy Forum
- PAL Allows Small Dogs on Flights
- Full Tourism Recovery For APAC Reached in 2025
- Apple Expands Into Hospitality
- Ads Coming To ChatGPT?
- Sonder Goes The Way Of WeWorks!
Emergency Rehabilitation Funds Released For Areas Devastated by Typhoon
Tourism Secretary, Christina Garcia Frasco and Department of Tourism (DOT) representatives have this week been visiting several areas in Negros Occidental. The areas were heavily affected by Typhoon Uwan.
To date PHP95 million in aid has been earmarked to assist the recovery of several Negros Occidental towns. Many of the affected areas are facing severe damage to homes, roads, infrastructure and tourism attractions.
A total of 161 tourists were recorded as stranded or temporarily stranded, after Typhoon Uwan. This included 71 passengers who were set to fly from Busuanga, Coron to El Nido, on Airswift flight USU-ENI. All were assisted with transport and accommodation by local authorities and tourism offices.
On November 8, the DOT also issued a Public Advisory reminding all DOT-Accredited Tourism businesses to follow responsible and transparent business practices. The Public Advisory came after social media reports of price gouging in areas affected by the recent earthquakes in Cebu and Davao, and Typhoon Tino.
Philippines To Host 2026 UN Tourism World Gastronomy Forum
The Philippines has been chosen to host the UN’s 10th Tourism World Gastronomy Forum, which will take place in 2026.
The Forum centers on the role of food tourism as a medium for sustainability and cultural preservation, and attracts Chefs and Innovators, advocates and global leaders from more than 150 countries.
The Philippines’ National Tourism Development Plan (NTDP) 2023-2028 includes Food Tourism as one of its key tourism growth drivers. And the Department of Tourism (DOT) has been working hard to advance this.
On accepting the Philippines bid to host the Forum, Zurab Pololikashvili, the UN Tourism Secretary-General said:
“[The Philippines] demonstrated leadership, institutional readiness, and commitment to meeting the legal and procedural requirements for hosting the Forum.”
PAL Allows Small Dogs On Flights
PAL announced on Wednesday 12 November that small dogs will be allowed to fly with an accompanying owner in-cabin. The new FurPAL Program currently only applies to certain routes.
Some flights heading to and from Bohol, Boracay, and Siargao will allow small dogs to travel with their owner. One-way base fares will start at P2,500.
Requirements:
- Only small dog breeds up to 10 kilograms
- Dog must be eight weeks old or older.
- One pet per passenger only AND with a limit of three small dogs per flight.
- Pet must be contained in a soft-sided, leak-proof pet carrier. Maximum size of carrier is 17 x 11 x 9.5 inches.
- Pet must be kept in the pet carrier for the duration of the flight
- Pet Carrier (& pet) must be placed under the seat in front of the passenger.
PAL has advised that the service may be extended to larger dogs, in time.
Some netizens have raised concerns about the impact on passengers who have a dog allergy. Others asked if the FurPAL Program will also extend to include cats.
While no answer was given to this question it may be a trickier one for PAL to consider:
- About 30% of people with allergies react to cats.
- The percentage of people who are allergic to dogs is much smaller.
- Plus those who are allergic to cats can experience much more severe reactions.
This is because cat allergens, particularly a protein called Fel d 1, are smaller and stickier, allowing them to remain suspended in the air and to accumulate on surfaces for much longer periods.
Global Industry News Updates
Full Tourism Recovery For APAC Reached in 2025
The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) recently released its Annual Tourism Monitor 2025 results. The report shows that Asia Pacific recorded 295.7 million international visitor arrivals (IVA) in the first half of 2025.
This puts APAC at a 91.9% recovery rate when compared to the pre-pandemic figures – a 5.4% YOY (year on year) increase.
In the first half of 2025 Japan attracted 14.4 million IVA’s. A 24.5% increase on the same period in 2024. And Macao has seen a 14.9% increase on its 2024 figures.
Sadly the Philippines does not factor in the Top Ten Destinations, which is determined by the number of Independent Visitor Arrivals.
The report cites the expansion of low-cost carriers in the APAC region – making travel more affordable and accessible – as having played a key role in increasing International Visitor arrival figures.
The high cost of domestic flights has been an ongoing frustration for many Filipino’s. Comments are regularly posted to social media posts saying that it is cheaper to travel to a neighboring country for their holiday, than it is to fly domestically within the Philippines.
Read More at HNR Hotel News
Industry News Updates – Tech News
Ads Coming To ChatGPT?
IF OpenAI were to incorporate Ads into ChatGPT search results in the future, it will be a user-centric model – and very different to Google.
Google Ads has been facing increased scrutiny in the US, and Europe. A U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation ruled that Google has been ‘manually’ manipulating Pay Per Click (PPC) rates, as far back as 2020, as part of an internal revenue drive.
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has stated that while he doesn’t consider Ads a priority revenue driver for the company, it is likely that ChatGPT will support Ads in the future. And he was quick to point out that – if ChatGPT does go down that route – it will be a different model to the one offered by Google Ads.
Altman has been clear that whatever Ad structure is applied to ChatGPT, it will need to prioritize user trust, authority and personalization based on learned preferences.
Essentially, that the searcher would only be shown Ads that match exactly what they are looking for. Rather than by which brand paid the highest rate for a PPC Ad. And OpenAI would apply the same small commission rate on any purchases or bookings made.
Search Engine Land predicts:
“If Altman’s ChatGPT ad model vision becomes reality, the path from question to recommendation to purchase could all take place in a single conversation .”
This model would put small independent hotels and restaurants on a better footing against the Marketing Teams of OTA’s, franchises and global hospitality chains. Visibility in a ranked list will be based on meeting the requirements set by the searcher. Instead of who has the most money to throw at Key Words and a paid Ad campaign.
Apple Expands Into Hospitality
Apple Pay’s VP (Vice President), Jennifer Bailey revealed that the tech giant has been slowly extending the reach of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet as a payment channel for travel, according to PaymentsDrive.com
Speaking at the Money 20/20 Conference in Las Vegas, Bailey announced that Apple Wallet has already been embedded in the U.S. as a payment method in airports and hotels, and Apple Pay for public transport systems and ride-share services Uber and Lyft across 800 cities.
Passengers on American Airlines can now add their boarding pass to their Apple Wallet, and Alaska Airlines has been accepting Apple Pay for in-flight purchases since 2023. Restaurant chains typically found in airports also accept Apple Pay.
Watch this space!
Sonder Goes The Way Of WeWorks!
Once hailed as a hospitality “Tech Disruptor”, Sonder this week entered into liquidation after Marriott terminated their partnership, off the back of spiraling costs and ravine-deep plunges in revenue.
Sonder launched in 2014, its vision – to offer apartment-style accommodation with consistent Hotel amenities, supported by tech-forward innovations like digital check-ins and seamless mobile experiences.
At its height Sonder was leasing, furnishing, and managing thousands of apartments and units across Europe and North America, much like the WeWork model over in the Office and Workspace industry. WeWork collapsed in 2019. Both models were capital intensive, and both companies cite expanding too fast as one of the reasons for failing.
Marriott International initally saw potential and value in the model, and entered into a licensing agreement earlier this year with Sonder, that would see all units rebranded to ‘Sonder By Marriott’.
Reports indicate that integrating Sonders Tech with Marriott’s reservation system and loyalty program was plagued with problems and delays, resulting in spiralling costs and even greater declines in their already tanked Revenue.
Marriot pulled the plug on the agreement this week, leaving Sonder no other option but to file for bankruptcy.
