Hey there, folks, thanks for being with me this year. It has been a "helluvah" ride as the Gen Z would coin it. It was indeed a great ride but just like any other sea trip, though it was not all the way smooth-sailing, we all managed to make it to the end of the year.  And with that let me give you and I a pat on the back. Here's a "Sea Traveler Award" for traveling the ports of the Philippines through reading and imagination.

Speaking of which, this year was also a promising year for the Philippines after it was awarded as the Best Cruise Destination in Asia and, as of this writing, around 1,000 guests from foreign countries are at the Port of Coron in Palawan for their December cruise escapade on the MV Aida Bella. These passengers are having a great time at the Maquinit hot spring, Lualhati Park, Palawan's historical church, Mount Tapyas, the souvenir shops, Palawan's famous cashew factory, and most of all, the island tours at Kayangan Lake, Barracuda Lake and Twin Lagoon. Such a perfect December getaway!

The MV Aida Bella was the ninth of 12 cruise ships to dock in Palawan this year and more are expected next year. No untoward incidents were reported and everything was smooth like butter.

From January to December this year, overall the PPA received and catered to around 80,000 cruise passengers at all PPA managed ports. PPA general manager Jay Santiago has vowed to develop more cruise terminals next year near the tourists sites of Siargao, Camiguin, Boracay, Palawan and Puerto Galera. This in an addition to the cruise terminals at the Ports of Curimao in Ilocos Norte, Salomague in Ilocos Sur, Manila, Bohol and El Nido, Palawan.

Also this was the year the PPA suspended the cruise agent Ben Line Agencies for the "cruise chaos" at the Port of Manila that went viral. After a thorough investigation of the chaos that occurred when the MV Norwegian Jewel cruise ship docked at the Port of Manila last 30 November, the regulator has suspended the permit to operate of Ben Line Agencies and TravelPeople Ltd. for 30 days.

PPA GM Santiago, for his part, said the suspension will give the operators time to review their processes to improve their services and ensure that a similar incident will not happen again.

As we write this column, the hands-on GM Santiago is doing the rounds of the Ports of Batangas and Calapan, Mindoro, the most visited and heavily crowded ports during the peak tourist season. This is in preparation for the influx of passengers going back to Manila after celebrating Christmas in the provinces.

In Batangas, the PPA opened this December the extension of the passenger terminal building to cater to an additional 5,000 passengers. From the former 3,500 seating capacity of the Batangas Port, it can now accomodate 8,000 passengers, the biggest passenger terminal this year.

To recall, the newly built passenger terminal building of the Port of Calapan also opened its doors to the public in March of this year, together with the Ports of Masbate and Coron, dubbed as #TatloSaMarso. This year has been full of opportunities for the PPA to showcase what the public can expect from the maritime industry, especially in terms of comfort and convenience.

After the World Health Organization declared the end of Covid-19 as a global public health emergency, more countries, including the Philippines, have relaxed travel restrictions causing people to make up for lost time, resulting in "revenge" travel trends. This allowed favorite travel destinations to return to life, opening once again the gates for land, air and sea travel.

The #PPAsyalTayo campaign was also launched in September of this year, in time for the expected influx of passengers during the 'ber' months and to advocate traveling via the improved and new seaports.

More ports opened this year to cater to passenger demands, including 13 completed port projects, with 33 more ongoing projects, of which 19 are set to be completed by the end of 2023.

Speaking of good news, PPA this year reported an increase in the number of foreign containers handled from January to October as global trade continued to gain traction translating to higher exports and imports. The latest data released by the PPA showed a 1.34-percent increase in foreign containers handled to 4.08-million 20-foot equivalent units during the 10-month period versus last year's 4.03-million TEUs.

Imports slightly increased to 2.04-million TEUs from 2.03-million TEUs during the period, particularly at the Manila International Container Terminal as well as the port management offices in Batangas and Davao. Likewise, exports went up by 2.3 percent to 2.04-million TEUs from 1.99-million TEUs, fueled by increases in the volumes handled at MICT as well as the ports in Davao and Cagayan de Oro.

When it comes to revenue, the agency showed a net income of P6.19 billion during the first half of 2023, higher by 7.85 percent against target, and a 23.18 percent or P1.16B increase compared to P5.02B net income for the same period in 2022.

Comparative revenue figures showed that all revenue groupings showed improvement in terms of Service and Business Income at 13.94 percent or a P630.21-million increase and Regulatory Income at 8.04 percent or a P393.58-million increase. Overall, PPA's total revenue as of end of June 2023 grew by 10.83 percent or a P1.02B increase amounting to P10.46B compared to P9.44B total revenue generated during the same period last year.

It can be recalled also that in 2022, the PPA completed 69 projects and in the first half of 2023, 30 seaport projects were completed during the first year of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s administration.

Indeed, its been a productive year for the ports nationwide. So next year, let's all look at the bright future as we welcome more port infrastructure projects and more positive developments in the world of sea travel and the maritime industry.

With that, join me again next year because we are all in the same boat!

"Hasta la vista, baby"