Travellers, the hospitality arm of Alliance Global Group Inc. (AGI), will invest PHP39.7 billion (US$700 million) in the projects.
“These will not be massive integrated resorts like Newport World or Westside City in Manila,” said Travellers President and CEO Nilo Thaddeus Rodriguez. “We are right-sizing the market with boutique gaming centers designed to complement the tourism estates we already operate.”
Tan’s Megaworld Corporation is renowned for building “live-work-play” townships across the Philippines. Its more than 30 master-planned communities, including Mactan Newtown and Boracay Newcoast, feature hotels, office towers, condominiums, dining and retail hubs, as well as convention centers, schools, museums, golf courses, and other lifestyle amenities.
The rise and fall of Philippines tourism
Travellers International’s boutique strategy aligns with current tourism trends in the Philippines, where visitor numbers have recently softened despite strong performance in 2024.
In January, Department of Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco reported a record PHP760 billion in sector revenues for 2024, noting that the industry was “not only bouncing back but also evolving and expanding.”
However, 2025 has brought challenges. According to Esquire Philippines, Korean tourist arrivals fell 18% between January and April, a decline linked to rising crimes against Korean nationals. Visitor numbers from Mainland China dropped 34.4% during the same period, impacted by reduced discretionary income and the Philippines’ suspension of e-visas for Chinese travelers. On 1 September, the Chinese Embassy in Manila further cautioned its citizens about “increasing crimes targeting Chinese nationals.”
Travellers moves beyond Manila
In contrast, Travellers is also backing the large-scale Westside City integrated resort in Parañaque, a PHP71 billion project now in its final construction stages. “The development is full speed ahead, with an opening targeted for the third quarter of 2026,” said Travellers President and CEO Nilo Thaddeus Rodriguez.
The property will feature three hotels, a casino with over 2,000 gaming machines and tables, a grand opera house, and a wide range of lifestyle amenities. “Westside City will be more than a destination,” Rodriguez told the Philippine Star. “It will be closer to what you experience at Marina Bay Sands or in Macau.”
Rodriguez noted that even as iGaming revenues overtake land-based earnings in the Philippines, physical casinos remain vital. “Our role is not diminished but redefined — to anchor tourism, deliver culture and entertainment, and provide the human connection and experiences online play can never replicate.”
He added, “The focus now is completing Westside and opening it as soon as possible.”
