Just a year after Typhoon Haiyan wreaked havoc across the Philippines, the country is back on track, and No.8 on the Lonely Planet places-to-go list for 2015.
As the Pope gets ready to visit, and with numerous festivals taking place, Expedia has reported a 55 per cent increase in searches for Philippines on its website in October, compared with this time last year.
It's been no mean feat for the Philippines to pick itself up after the typhoon, which struck on November 8, 2013, killing thousands and, according to the Philippine Tour Operators Association, leading to a 30-40 per cent holiday cancellation rate.
Major tourist destinations including Boracay, Palawan, Cebu and Bohol were affected, while hundreds of tourists were left stranded for days. Tacloban City, the capital of Leyte province, was hardest hit.
"Typhoon Haiyan had a tragic impact on tens of millions of people in the Philippines, but with over 7107 islands, 97 per cent of the country was actually unaffected," says Richard de Villa, sales and promotions officer at the Department of Tourism at the Philippines Embassy.
For an archipelago with thousands of idyllic islands offering world-class surfing and diving, the Philippines remains a relatively undiscovered travel destination.
Cebu in the north was ravaged by the storm but is back in business. Tourists are visiting the Kawasan Falls and the country's tallest peak and semi-active volcano, Mount Apo.
Andy Washington, managing director of Expedia UK and Ireland, says: "Following work with tourism boards such as New Orleans and Japan after they faced natural disasters, we know the impact that supporting tourism can have on a destination's economic recovery."
