How women are challenging stereotypes, breaking boundaries through travel

Traveling knows know gender.

This fact was the highlight at Airbnb’s inaugural #WomenInTravel industry dialogue that celebrated the power of Filipino women in late February, a few days before International Women’s Month.

It featured five speakers who discussed how traveling challenged stereotypes and broke boundaries, as more women take action to uplift and empower new generations of Filipinas in the travel and tourism industry.

Among the guest speakers were Mich Goh, Airbnb’s head of Public Policy for Southeast Asia, India, Hong Kong, and Taiwan; Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte; Anne Jeaneth Casalme, Philippine Commission on Women Gender and Development representative; Noelle Wenceslao, Philippine Coast Guard officer and mountaineer, and Colleen Vidal, tourism entrepreneur ng and Filipina content creator.

Mich Goh

For Goh, Airbnb values the women-powered host community in the Philippines.

The rental platform said that Filipinas are powering local tourism these days, citing how the Host community in the Philippines is its second-largest women-powered Host community in the world after New Zealand.

Women make up two-thirds of all Airbnb Hosts in the country. By welcoming travelers into their homes and employing fellow women in their daily operations, they have posted increased contributions to the tourism economy, collectively earning over P2.5 billion in 2022.

“Women Hosts are playing an increasingly pivotal role in the travel and tourism sector, and especially in the Philippines. We are heartened to see more and more women open their homes to travelers and provide the authentic hospitality that Filipinos are renowned for,” Gogh said last February 28.

“As more Pinays step up to lead our Host communities and share hosting tips with one another, we remain committed to supporting and growing our Pinay Host community and ensuring that their roles in contributing to the industry are recognized,” she added.

Globally, the guest and host community of Airbnb is mostly composed of women. Around 55% are women hosts while 40% of its 1 million superhosts are women. They provide hospitality in more than 200 countries and territories.

Joy Belmonte

Not known to many, Belmonte is an archeologist and a former travel agency owner—a job which allowed her to explore various places here and abroad. Before she entered politics, Belmonte toured a lot overseas off the beaten track as a solo traveler.

Belmonte shared how she backpacked to Thailand and Mexico on a smalll allowance.

Her experiences during these travels made her aware of the safety risks for solo female travelers and the independence they can achieve while doing so.

Because of these, when she took office as the chief executive of Quezon City, she recognized that travel must be inclusive regardless of gender and put into consideration every traveler’s safety.

The city has policies in place to keep the travelers solo or group in the city safer such as complaint desk for tourists, among others.

“Quezon City is committed to ensuring that every woman is recognized, empowered and celebrated through various initiatives that promote economic empowerment, equality in business and livelihood opportunities for all genders, including women tourism entrepreneurs,” the mayor said.

“We will continue to be a leader and model of local governance to create a society that is inclusive and unbiased. We look forward to industry players such as Airbnb supporting our goal to make Quezon City and the Philippines a go-to destination, with women at the forefront of tourism development, she added.

Anne Jeaneth Casalne

Casalme of the Philippine Commission on Women Gender and Development agreed with Belmonte there is a need to drive more visibility of women in the tourism industry. She said the commission supports initiatives to empower Filipino women in the tourism sector.

“We are excited to see companies like Airbnb showcasing their expertise in tourism development and promotion of women entrepreneurship in the country while advocating the safety of women tourism travelers. We look forward to more discussions on women’s sector development with the private sector in the country,” Casalme said.

Noelle Wenceslao

Another Filipina challenging the stereotypes of travel by empowering women is Wenceslao. She is the first Filipina to summit Mount Everest.

Wenceslao shared that for her challenging climb, she drew strength by looking at the journey as her “highest” goal.

“I believe everyone has their own Mount Everest, an ultimate goal we want to achieve. It took me three years of preparation and three months on expedition to spend just thirty minutes on the summit, but it meant so much that the long preparation was nothing compared to what I felt when I conquered it,” the mountaineer said.

Wenceslao said she shares this feat with her fellow Filipina mountaineers.

Aside from her Filipina friends, Wenceslao also met equally strong and skillful women from overseas during her climb.

The Philippine Coast Guard officer and renowned mountaineer said that she continues to be amazed by the diverse and strong women she is meeting.

“Throughout my years in the coast guard, I’ve worked alongside so many diverse and strong women, including a two-time Olympian, a world champion dragon boat paddler, women rescue divers and bomb squad members. To top it off, they are mothers —proving that stereotypes exist only if we allow them to,” Wenceslao said.

Colleen Vidal

Before becoming a content creator and a travel entrepreneur, Vidal also an Airbnb Host, was a full-time certified public accountant auditor.

She then discovered the world of travel which opened many opportunities for her, first as a hobbyist, then as an entrepreneur.

“When I first started creating travel content, I wanted to share tips to guide my followers on how best to plan their vacations. Along the way, I realised that I could provide these very accommodations and activities – and that’s how my journey as a tourism entrepreneur came about,” Vidal said.

This is where she also discovered her love for Siargao.

“Throughout the years that I have called Siargao my home, I have learned that us locals make up its very soul. Promoting the island’s travel offerings has meant giving back more economic opportunities to local communities, while also helping tourists experience what Siargao is all about,” she said.

Vidal is also planning to open up a corgi cafe in Siargao, apart from her existing Siargao-related businesses.