TOURIST arrivals in the Mimaropa (Occidental Mindoro, Oriental Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan) or Region 4B, are ptrojected to hit some 2.81 million this year.
In a text message to the BusinessMirror, Tourism Regional Director for Mimaropa Danilo B. Intong said, “We are only targeting a 10-percent increase in 2019.” Last year, total tourist arrivals in the region—home to some of tourism’s “crown jewels”—reached some 2.55 million, according to a news statement from the Department of Tourism (DOT).
Intong’s target for 2019 is a conservative estimate though considering the region hosts a good-sized number of resorts and plush accommodations, especially in Palawan, even as the DOT aims to strengthen the region’s position as a world-class tourist hub. The agency intends to do this by making the region’s diverse attractions more accessible, and ensuring that the whole region is a safe haven for international and local visitors alike.
The arrivals in 2018 were some 23 percent higher than the arrivals in 2017. Of the total 2.55 million tourists who visited the region last year, some 31 percent or 787,914 were foreigners, while the bulk were locals at 1.75 million, and overseas Filipinos were 7,953.
Among the foreign travelers, the top markets were South Korean, China, the United States, Taiwan and France.
This developed as DOT Mimaropa officials and representatives of at least 10 air, and sea transport companies met recently at the agency’s head office in Makati, and agreed to work together to upgrade tourist services through accreditation, and increased connectivity.
Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat said, “Opening new air routes is vital to the Philippines’s aspiration to become a tourism powerhouse like its Asian neighbors.”
The private transport firms— Philippine Airlines, AirAsia, Air Juan Aviation, Airswift Transport, Skyjet, 2Go Group, Montenegro Shipping Lines, Navios Shipping Lines, Starhorse Shipping Lines, and Starlite Ferries—pledged to comply immediately with accreditation requirements, according to the DOT news statement. Transport services are considered primary tourism enterprises that need accreditation, in accordance with Republic Act 9593, or Tourism Act of 2009.
With increased connectivity and accessibility, Intong, for his part, said Mimaropa’s emerging destinations in the other provinces will gain global attention now enjoyed by Palawan’s natural sights.
Most of the tourists who arrived in the region last year visited Palawan’s renowned attractions like the Puerto Princesa Underground River, Tubbataha Reef, El Nido and Coron islands.
In response to DOT’s challenge to make the entire Mimaropa region a major tourist hub, the transport companies have given assurances they were planning to increase and expand connectivity from other Philippine cities and from abroad. Representatives of the airlines and shipping companies said they would add more flights and open new routes to connect to the region.
Intong said cruise and nautical tourism is a very promising niche market in the region. “We are elated as we share the renewed optimism over the continued growth of tourism industry, which has proven to be a key economic driver that can help uplift the lives of the poor in the countryside,” he emphasized.
Accreditation of transportation firms earn the chance to be given the Seal of Quality Facility, according to DOT Mimaropa officer Cecil V. Aranton.
Another incentive for DOT accreditation, she said, is the transport service provider eligibility for membership in the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), the marketing arm of the DOT, she said.
TPB officers Mark Nicole Evangelista and Milo Oropeza also explained to the transport firms the agency’s efforts at marketing the region.
During the meeting, P/Lt. Col. Robin Sarmiento of the Philippine National Police for Mimaropa assured the public that the region remains a safe haven for tourists, with one of the lowest crime rates in the country. To this, Intong said the DOT is continuously training more tourist policemen in the region.
DOT-Mimaropa officials are also expected to meet with authorities of the region’s airports and seaports, as well as land travel and tour service providers, to discuss issues on tourism infrastructure needed to improve its connectivity.
Image credits: Mirko Vitali | Dreamstime.com