Tourist arrivals increased by 12.15 percent to 662,987 in April , the Department of Tourism ( DOT) said.

Data collected by the Bureau of Immigration and released by DOT Friday showed April tourist arrivals are higher than April 2018 tally of 591,137.

The tourism department's data also showed that compared to March 2018 with 642,757 visitors, more tourists arrived during the same month this year with a total of 714,309.

The five visitor markets were China, Korea, United States of America, Japan, and Australia.

The number of tourists from China jumped by 26.77 percent from 109,789 to 139,177. Majority of visitors from China arrived in Manila, particularly in the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA); and in the Kalibo International Airport.

From the 62,461 Chinese visitors which arrived in NAIA in April 2018, this rose to 82,324 in April 2019.

From 24,677 in April 2019, the number of Chinese visitors which landed in Kalibo reached 30,912 in April 2019.

The second highest number of tourists came from South Korea with 130,707 r compared to 114,973 in April 2019.

Most South Korean tourists visited Cebu and Manila. About 51,566 South Koreans went to Cebu this year while the tourist department said the number of South Korean visitors in Manila dropped from 34,295 to 30,670.

Total number of visitors from USA in April 2019 reached 87,710, 2.50 percent higher than last year; Japanese tourists rose by 17.75 percent to 57,724 and 28,683 Australians arrived.

The Department of Tourism relaunched the "It's More Fun in the Philippines" campaign last February, which aimed to promote sustainable tourism.

Miss Universe Catriona Gray was chosen as the country's tourism ambassador and produced series of videos showcasing top tourist destinations in Philippines. Cristina Eloisa Baclig/DMS