The Philippines welcomed more than 61,000 international travelers amid the Christmas rush, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said, surpassing its earlier projection of at least 50,000 passengers.
On December 23, BI officials reported processing 49,176 international arrivals and 61,784 departures at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
Across the country, total international passenger traffic reached 61,658 arrivals and 66,655 departures.
The BI said the higher passenger volume was expected due to the Holiday season exodus.
Authorities noted that airport operations nationwide remain orderly and manageable despite the surge.
To ensure smoother processing, 132 additional immigration officers were deployed across all airports.
At NAIA Terminals 1 and 3, 24 biometric immigration e-gates were activated to prevent long queues during the Christmas rush.