Newport World Resorts, Philippines tourism department team up for entertainment offerings

The Philippines’ Department of Tourism (DOT) has signed a memorandum of understanding with casino complex Newport World Resorts to promote entertainment-led tourism and encourage visitors to stay longer and spend more in the country. The agreement, signed on Tuesday, covers the promotion of live performances, cultural productions, culinary experiences and other leisure attractions, according to a DOT release. Under the partnership, the tourism department will incorporate Newport World Resorts’ offerings into its “Love the Philippines” and “Discover More to Love” promotional campaigns, as well as support original Filipino productions and connect the resort with tourism stakeholders in the Philippines and overseas markets. Newport World Resorts will in turn develop integrated “stay, dine and watch” packages, visitor itineraries centred on Metro Manila, and explore promotional rates and ticket offers, per the announcement. “Entertainment has become one of the strongest reasons travellers choose to visit and return to a destination,” said Tourism Secretary Maria Bernardita Angara-Mathay (pictured, centre right), as cited in the release. She added that the collaboration was also an opportunity to support the country’s creative economy while incorporating entertainment experiences into wider efforts to grow Philippine tourism. Newport World Resorts is a casino and leisure complex located next to Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport. It is operated by Travellers International Hotel Group Inc, part of local conglomerate Alliance Global Group. Nilo Thaddeus Rodriguez (pictured, centre left), president and chief executive of Newport World Resorts, said tourism destinations needed to offer “more than access and accommodation”. “They must offer experiences that give people a deeper reason to visit, stay longer, return, and ultimately, discover more to love about the Philippines,” he stated. Live entertainment under the partnership will be anchored by Full House Theater Company, Newport World Resorts’ production arm. The latter is also due to serve as the production arm of the under-development Westside Resort in Manila’s Entertainment City, according to the DOT. The tourism department said the new resort, scheduled to open this year, would include four theatre venues. Westside Resort is being developed through a partnership involving Travellers International and Philippine-listed Suntrust Resort Holdings Inc. The DOT said Newport World Resorts and Westside Resort were expanding their entertainment offerings as part of a broader effort to position the Philippines as the “Broadway of Asia”. The agreement comes as the Philippine government seeks to increase international tourism arrivals. The country recorded 4.11 million foreign arrivals in the first eight months of 2026, up 3.7 percent year-on-year, according to DOT data reported this week. Ms Angara-Mathay also said this week that the government was working to expand visa-free entry for Chinese-mainland passport holders beyond Manila and Cebu to include Clark, Bohol, Palawan and Caticlan, the gateway to Boracay. Chinese arrivals to the Philippines rose nearly 69.2 percent year-on-year in the first eight months of 2026, to 310,088.