THE Philippines has made it to the list of the World Travel and Tourism Council’s (WTTC’s) safe travel destinations, and was bestowed a stamp that makes it official as the 100th such destination.
In a news statement, the largest private sector organization of tourism and travel leaders and experts, said the Philippines was among the 100 destinations now using its “Safe Travels” stamp, which means the country has adopted health and safety protocols in keeping with global standards.
WTTC President and CEO Gloria Guevara, said: “The 100 destinations which now proudly use the stamp are working together to help rebuild consumer confidence worldwide. We welcome the Philippines, an incredible destination and home to some of the world’s most beautiful islands, as our 100th destination, as well as other popular destinations around the globe such as Turkey, Egypt, Indonesia and Kenya.”
This developed as the Department of Tourism (DOT) finally rolled out a list of open tourist sites in the country, on its Philippines Travel web site (https://bit.ly/32NxTf7).
A look through the list, however, showed that many of the sites were open only to tourists in the locality or region in which the site is located. No inbound travels are still allowed in the country except for overseas Filipino workers, returning overseas Filipinos, as well as members of the diplomatic corps and international humanitarian and relief organizations.
The only tourist sites “generally open to [the] public” were located in the Davao region e.g. Davao Crocodile Park and Eden Nature Park (Davao City), Dahican Beach in Mati (Davao Oriental), Lake Leonard and Mt. Pattung/Sea of Clouds (Davao de Oro), and Samal Island and Tagum City (Davao del Norte).
Also “open for tourists” are El Kabayo Riding Stables, and the golf course at the Luisita Golf and Country Club in Tarlac.
Those open to tourists from general community quarantine (GCQ) and modified GCQ areas are Las Casas de Acuzar in Bataan; several tourism establishments in the Clark free port and golf courses in Pampanga, along with the famous Bacolor Church.
Ocean Adventure in the Subic Bay free port in Zambales, made famous recently by the Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque’s “dolphin encounter,” is open to visitors from MGCQ areas who are going to its beaches, using its golf courses, and visiting the dolphin facility. Those staying more than three nights require a negative RT-PCR test results.
The web site’s tab on “Palawan” in the Mimaropa region, however, failed to list island destinations which are actually open to tourists on point-to-point travel. These include the islands where the El Nido Resorts Group operates, Pamalican Island which is managed by Amanpulo, and Puerco Island, site of Banwa Resort.
Alphaland’s Balesin Island Club on Polillo Island, Quezon, is open, based on social media posts of its guests. (See, “Leisure trips OK’d in playgrounds of the rich,” in the BusinessMirror, September 1, 2020.)
The site also fails to list requirements for those going to Tagaytay City in Cavite, which technically, is supposed to accept visitors from MGCQ areas only with health certificates or travel passes. Social media was filled with photos of the traffic jam going to Tagaytay on September 13, causing a confusion as to who are allowed to do leisure travel.
Lawmakers hearing the 2021 budget proposal of the DOT last week requested that such a list of open travel destinations be published. The agency has been trying to get more tourist destinations to reopen, but local government chiefs have been hesitant and have requested for Covid-19 testing labs.
DOT chief thanks WTTC
Meanwhile, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat was pleased by WTTC’s recognition of the Philippines’s as a safe travel destination. “I wish to thank WTTC for recognizing our efforts of putting in place policies concerning health, safety and sanitation protocols, which we have benchmarked with global best practices and aligned with WTTC’s standards.”
She added, “The Safe Travels stamp will further encourage our stakeholders to adhere to health and safety standards, and will also help us rebuild traveller confidence, so we can restart tourism and preserve and sustain jobs.”
The DOT has a P1.44-billion budget next year to promote the Philippines and develop a brand campaign, most of which will be spent in trying to persuade locals to travel around the country. (See, “DOT only has P1.4 billion to promote PHL as pandemic guts tourism,” in the BusinessMirror, September 18, 2020.)
“As the stamp continues to gain in popularity,” said Romulo Puyat, “travelers will more easily be able to recognize the destinations worldwide which have adopted the new set of global protocols, encouraging the return of ‘Safe Travels’ around the world.”