It’s been two years since Covid-19 loosened its hold on people, yet many references to revenge travel and seizing the day later, one is urged to ask: what have airport authorities done in the meantime to improve the travel experience?

Are the toilets up to par or are we sliding on even the maintenance of one of the most important parts of the “traveler experience?” It hurts to compare our toilets with what our Asian neighbors have managed to create in their countries, but in some places they have clean toilets that don’t smell. Some have free shower stalls, hygienic no-touch dispensers and faucets, and bidets.

If you have traveled recently, you would have noticed that the long lines at travel tax payment counters, airline counters and immigration are back, so that perhaps you should devote four hours before your international flight to be at the airport to make your boarding gate on time.

It is not ideal, of course. We do acknowledge that the volume of travelers has increased radically post-pandemic, but it seems unusual to see how some airport personnel seem at a loss on what to do when lines have snaked so long, people have begun to look grumpy and annoyed.

“Is this the end of the line?”

That question kept echoing in my head coming from a recent trip, thinking of countless times the perennially challenged tourism sector has struggled to improve the airport and seaport experience — just one part of a slew of travails many department heads had encountered in the past.

Perhaps it does take disruptors or out-of-the-box thinkers to address the conundrum that is tourism.

It’s a huge industry, its potential vast, and the Philippines is just the kind of country that can make something of itself on tourism alone.

But, as I said in a previous column, there is much more to it than meets the eye. Tourism is so wide-ranging and deep that, if you really think about it, it involves you, me and everyone else. Why? It has to do with “soft infrastructure,” and I don’t just mean the workers in the tourism sector.

When one speaks of highlighting Filipino hospitality, it should be a consistent experience for the traveler in that, beyond the gateway through which they enter the country, that warmth and genuine kindness we take pride in continue to be felt.

It should be “a Filipino thing” in the true sense of the word. Do we even still feel that inclination to showcase our country and our culture? We should all be reminded about who we are as a people. Let’s not wait for another two golds at the Olympics to bring back that sense of pride.

I like what the current secretary said about her approach to the matter when she was offered the position by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in 2022. She told DAILY TRIBUNE in a roundtable last week: “When I first came into the fold of the Department of Tourism, that was the first thing I asked: How much is our budget for tourism roads? Not the usual question you would expect. Because the focus is always how much is our budget for tourism promotions. But, ako, coming from local government, I know for a fact that you can promote as much as you can. But if it’s difficult to access, and if or when they do get there the experience is not ideal with a lack of restrooms, and the accessibility is a challenge, the pricing is a challenge, then you will never be able to increase your global competitiveness.”

I have no doubt the sheer energy and optimism of our Tourism Secretary and her able team will push the department to new heights. Already, we can see the results of their hard work and dedication.

Tourism under Frasco’s helm has been most vibrant and attuned to the times because she has taken the time to see for herself the situation all over the Philippines.

It seems a long, slow road to the kind of traveler experience we so want to offer everyone, but it’s encouraging to see that we are moving forward at last.