ILOILO – The long-standing push for a direct air link between Iloilo and South Korea is back on the table, with Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. raising the proposal anew during a courtesy visit by the ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the Philippines, Lee Sang-hwa.
Defensor said a direct Iloilo–Seoul flight would significantly boost tourism and trade not only for Iloilo City and Iloilo province but for the entire Panay Island, citing the steady flow of Korean visitors to Western Visayas — particularly to Boracay Island — and the growing Korean community based in Iloilo.
According to the governor, there are currently around 500 Korean nationals living in Iloilo.
Defensor stressed that the proposed Iloilo–South Korea route remains a priority regional connectivity project that had already gained traction before being shelved during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The push for a direct flight is also being supported by the Department of Tourism (DOT). Even before, Crisanta Marlene Rodriguez, regional director of DOT in Western Visayas, had been advocating for direct international flights from Iloilo to Korea, as well as to Taiwan and Japan, to attract more foreign tourists to the region.
“We are hoping to have more international direct flights to and from Iloilo,” Rodriguez said in an interview last year during the resumption of flights from Iloilo to Hong Kong, Singapore, and Bangkok, Thailand.
DOT data showed Western Visayas recorded 5,909,568 tourist arrivals in 2024, a 10.25 percent increase from 2023 and slightly higher than the 5.8 million arrivals logged in 2019. These arrivals generated an estimated P74 billion in visitor receipts, with P10.96 billion coming from foreign and overseas Filipino tourists.
Aklan accounted for the biggest share with 2,202,023 tourists and P42.93 billion in receipts, followed by Iloilo City with 1,001,028 tourists and P9.40 billion. Iloilo province recorded 358,475 tourists and P3.94 billion in receipts, while Antique, Capiz, and Guimaras posted more modest but steadily growing figures.
“These figures reflect the growing tourism industry in Western Visayas and the region’s potential to attract more international visitors in the years ahead,” Rodriguez said.
At present, Iloilo International Airport serves daily domestic flights to Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Clark, Davao, General Santos, Manila, Puerto Princesa, Tagbilaran (Bohol), Legazpi, and Dumaguete, with Cebu Pacific, Philippine Airlines, and AirAsia operating at the airport./PN
