BALER, Aurora—The number of tourists arriving in this province steadily rose since 2008, and the increase is expected to continue, thanks to the improved road networks and the establishment of new hotels, the Aurora tourism office said in a report released last week.
The tourism office, headed by Michael Palispis, said there were 778,917 local and international tourists in 2015, increasing by at least 7,121 percent compared to the 10,786 tourists in 2008.
The highest annual increase was recorded in 2014 during the full-year operation of Costa Pacifica, a three-star hotel and resort along the Sabang Beach in Baler. The 106-room hotel was established in 2013. There were 272, 182 tourists in 2013, and the number rose to 684,977 in 2014.
In 2008 there were 27 hotels in the easternmost Central Luzon province. In 2015 there were 135 hotels, including the newly opened Seasta Beach Resort here. There are 1,307 hotel rooms in Aurora, with 925 of them air-conditioned.
Many tourists flock to Baler for its surfing activity at Sabang Beach. The provincial government, headed by Gov. Gerardo A. Noveras, is promoting other destinations outside Baler.
One of these is the more than 20-kilometer-long Dinadiawan beach in Dipaculao town, 50 km north of Baler. There are 23 hotels and resorts in Dinadiawan, including the Dinadiawan Agri Development managed by Pat Avenido.
“This is not Boracay. This is Aurora. It’s worth visiting,” said Deng Pangilinan, president of the Pampanga Press Club (PPC). The PPC was invited for a familiarization tour by the Aurora government and the Department of Tourism (DOT) Central Luzon office.
“The sands in the beach are not as white as Boracay’s, but the waters and the surroundings are fresher and cleaner in Aurora,” Pangilinan said. “More important, the roads from Pampanga have vastly improved and all cemented.”
“The beaches in Dipaculao are ideal for the whole family and swimming unlike in Sabang which is popular for surfing,” Charlotte Madarang of the tourism office said.
“Dipaculao and its resorts are filled during the peak season,” she added.
The usual route to Baler is via the Subic Clark Tarlac Expressway (SCTEx). Motorists exit at the SCTEx-La Paz and pass by Tarlac, Nueva Ecija and parts of Nueva Vizcaya before reaching Maria Aurora, the first town of Aurora known for its giant balete tree believed to be between 400 years and 600 years old.
It takes less than four hours of land travel from Clark, Pampanga, to Baler.
According to the tourism office, the must-see places and activities are the historical trail from Baler Church to Quezon Park, eco-strip from Ermita Hill to Dima-dimalangat Islets in Baler, Dicasalarin Cove in Baler, Ditumabo Falls in San Luis, Amper Beach Scenic Highway in Dipaculao, Dibutunan Marine Protected, Bulawan Falls in Dinalungan, San Ildefonso Peninsula in Casiguran, Diniog Beach in Dilasag and Matawe Inter-Tidal in Dingalan.
The popular local products are the sabutan items, such as hats, fans, mats, slippers, table runner, place mats and bags; suman, Nanay Pacing’s peanut butter and coco jam, pako salad, bukayo and pakumbo and banana chips.