PIA Dispatch - Thursday, May 21, 2009

Tourism boom produces robust increase in investments; widens travel, employment - DOT

Manila (PNA) — Amid the worldwide economic downturn, the Philippine tourism industry expanded in terms of investments, travel and employment this year as a result of the Department of Tourism’s (DOT) persistent and focused campaign on local and international levels.

”We’ve been participating in tourism campaigns abroad, joining travel and trade fairs and inviting foreign travel sales agents and hotel, resort and restaurant owners, as well as media to come over and discover the Philippines’ natural beauty, its rich history and culture, various products, medical tourism and conducive investment climate. I’m glad our efforts are paying off,” said Tourism Secretary Joseph 'Ace' Durano.

Indeed, travel/tourism is one of the country’s top money-makers; the other one represented by the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who continue to remit billions of dollars to the national coffers.

”This year, the Philippines has been topping travel ticket sales and widespread publicity in Continental Europe’s most influential and leading travel magazines and trade publications.

”Travel sales agents and bookings have been increasing because we have not yet experienced the A(H1N1) pandemic that’s been troubling several countries. So far, we have not suffered any canceled bookings,” said Durano.

For its contribution to the government’s Comprehensive Livelihood Emergency Employment Program (CLEEP) the DOT, through the "Trabaho sa Turismo" (TST) has opened an annual recruitment fair for tens and thousands of applicants nationwide for hotel and restaurant workers, tourist guides, water travel personnel, etc. by some 300 companies on May 22-23.

The DOT is also promoting the country’s top tourist spots to second and third generation Americans and Canadians by holding an annual Ambassadors, Consuls General and Tourism Directors Guide Tour (ACGTD) on July 11-17 with some 500 participants, highlighted with a once-in-a lifetime experience of meeting President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

The DOT is constantly upgrading its campaigns and projects in quality and quantity when it comes to infrastructure facilities and intangibles like media and food service.

“We have to keep up with the world, the competition is particularly stiff but we can survive if we have foresight translated to action,” the Tourism honcho said.

For the first quarter of 2009, the DOT’s Plans and Promotions Division reported that new hotels and resorts opened a total of 1,231 additional rooms at the cost of P8.16 billion and hired 1,286 employees.

For instance, the opening of Cebu’s P3.18-billion Imperial Palace Water Park, Resort and Spa increased the room supply to 14,792, which provided jobs to 780 workers.

The P8.5-million San Remigio Beach Club in the northern part of Cebu also opened its new facilities by building a convention center to capture the meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) of both international and domestic markets as an investment.

In Boracay Island, the high-end 217-room Shangri-La’s Boracay Resort and Spa opened just in time for the influx of tourists on vacation and long holidays, thus initially hiring 488 workers to manage its various ranges of product offerings.

In Palawan, seven locators investing in 28 cluster villas for a total cost of P761.9 million in the Amanpulo Tourism Enterprise Zone also began their operation during the first quarter of the year.

Metro Manila is likewise on boom with the opening of the Legend International’ s Park, Bed and Breakfast Hotel, Eurotel Hotel Branch in Makati City, and the expansion of Oakwood Serviced Residences which increased the total room supply by 320.

By the end of 2009, at least 1,946 more people will be directly employed nationwide once the additional 2,315 rooms become operational in the following destinations:

•Metro Manila: Manila Ocean Park (120 rooms), The Picasso Serviced Residences (136 rooms), Newport Marriott Hotel (342 rooms), and Maxims Hotel (178 rooms).

•Cebu: Radisson Hotel (400 rooms).

•Boracay: Crowne Regency (449 rooms), Phonex Hotel (130 rooms), Boracay Regency Lagoon (120 rooms), Seven Stones (100 rooms), Grand Water (100 rooms).

•Puerto Princesa: Microtel Inns and Suites (50 rooms)

•Tagaytay: Summer Ridge (108 rooms).

•Albay: Discovery Bay Misibis (82 rooms).

To meet the increasing demand for tourism services, the DOT endorsed five development projects worth P6.323 billion in this year’s first quarter, which will generate 6,340 employment opportunities for local residents in the said tourist areas.

A US$ 200-million luxury spa and resort is also set to be developed by Banyan Tree in a 55-hectare property in Diwaran Island off Palawan to generate 8,000 direct and indirect jobs during the planning, construction and operational stages from 2009 to 2012.

In Subic, Harbor Yacht Services (HYS) Philippines will construct a restaurant and resort in a marina facility with an investment package of P36.1 million.

With regards to new tourism facilities, the country's biggest man-made lake, the P20-million, 18-hectare Lago del Rey, was opened recently to tourists by the provincial government of Camarines Sur.

This new tourist product complements the wakeboarding park set up by the local government unit (LGU) in 2005, which also offers family-oriented activities such as boat riding, fishing, and swimming, among others.

Up north in Cagayan, the Anguib beach has started to draw foreign and domestic wind and kite surfing enthusiasts because of its unspoiled natural wealth and wider and bigger reef ideal for the sports.

To promote the area, the DOT and Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) have organized a windsurfing exhibition which was attended by international and local windsurfers.

With increased demand for nature and wildlife adventure, the DOT and the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines have jointly developed birdwatching tours in coordination with tour operators and LGUs in key destinations. 

The most notable bird watching sites are in Balanga City, Candaba Swamp, Paitan Lake, Pantabangan Dam, Puerto Princesa, Hundred Islands National Park, Subic Bay, Olango Island and Mount Apo.

The Wildfowl and Wetland Trust, a leading conservation organization in the United Kingdom, will dispatch a fact- finding mission this May 2009 to assist the DOT and other agencies in the preservation and promotion of wetlands for wildlife habitat.

A kayak competition in April was conducted by the DOT and the LGU of Alaminos in the Hundred Islands National Park in Pangasinan.

Secretary Durano, who is batting to make Hundred Islands the Kayaking Center of the Philippines, said "if we could get at least 10 to 25 percent of the more than two million American kayakers to visit the place, it would greatly boost tourism, investment and employment for the Pangasinenses on the South China Sea."

Managed by the Hundred Islands Eco-Tour Association (HIETA), a community-based organization of out-of-school youth, the package involves a half- and whole-day kayak clinic and tour of the charming islets of the Hundred Islands as well as camping experience in Bolo Beach.

The HIETA has been tapped by the DOT and Sun and Sea Kayaks to provide tour services during the Kayak Explore Hundred Island Summer Eco-Challenge in April 2009.

In Silang, Cavite, a P500-million Wakeboard Park will rise to cap the popularity of the CamSur Wakeboarding Camp in a 12-hectare area. 

Foreign visitors in top destinations of the country during the first quarter of 2009 grew by 10.33 percent for a total of 1.3 million.

The number is constantly monitored to pinpoint which places might need help and improvement.

Cebu attracted the biggest volume of visitors with a share of 32 percent, followed by Boracay (12 percent), Davao City (11.9 percent, Camarines Sur (11 percent), Zambales (7 percent) and Bohol (5 percent).

Cebu was the most frequently visited destination by foreigners with 184,790 arrivals, followed by Boracay (63.903), Zambales (25.252), Camarines Sur (24,976) and Bohol (24,350).

Domestic tourist arrivals in Puerto Princesa City and Coron in Palawan posted a record-breaking growth of 392 percent as more flights were mounted to these destinations from Manila, Cebu, and Caticlan as well as Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia.

Likewise, local visitors flocked to Camarines Sur for wakeboarding, Surigao del Sur, Sorsogon (Donsol) for whale shark interaction, Zambales (Subic) for recreation, Ilocos Norte and La Union for sightseeing and beach holiday resulting in double-digit gains in these destinations.

Overall, the volume of domestic tourists visiting key destinations grew faster at 13 percent while foreign arrivals recorded a four percent hike in the first quarter.