BAGUIO CITY continues to be cautious about letting tourists in, despite a recent announcement that it would open its doors to guests from the rest of Luzon starting October 22.
Official data obtained by the BusinessMirror showed that from October 1 to 11, there were 536 travel requests made from Region 1 (Ilocos) via the city’s Visitor Information and Travel Assistance (Visita) app, yet only four of them were approved. Two arrived on October 2 and two arrived on October 11.
Referring to the statistics above, a hotelier in Baguio who requested anonymity told the BusinessMirror in Filipino, “It’s still difficult for tourists to enter…the screening is quite tough!”
In all, there were 1,608 travel requests made as of October 11, including those from Region 1, National Capital Region (NCR), Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Cagayan Valley, the Cordillera Autonomous Region, the United States, Central Visayas, Bicol, and Soccsksargen. The City of Pines has been the traditional summer capital of the Philippines.
This developed as Health Undersecretary Dr. Maria Rosario S. Vergeire clarified that the pilot-testing of the SD Biosensor antigen test in Baguio City is still ongoing. In a text message, she said, “We said there were just 200 samples tested and the required sample size was 956, so results were inconclusive at this point.”
She added, “We still wait for them to complete the required sample size so we can have accurate results.” Previous published reports quoted Vergeire and National Task Force on Covid-19 spokesman Restituto Padilla as having said the Baguio pilot-test of the South Korean-produced antigen test failed, when compared with results of RT-PCR test results. Under the World Health Organization-approved pilot test, select visitors to Baguio are supposed to undergo both RT-PCR and antigen tests to test the latter’s accuracy.
On October 1, Baguio and the Ilocos region began implementing their Ridge and Reef travel corridor, allowing the entry of tourists between their cities and provinces. Over the weekend, the city announced it would start accepting guests from the NCR, Cagayan Valley, and Central Luzon. Only 200 visitors will be accepted per day.
Baguio made the announcement on Saturday, during the Department of Tourism-Baguio Post Opening Assessment attended by Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat, Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong, Rep. Mark Go, and the tourism stakeholders.
The new health and safety measures will be finalized anew together with the Inter-Agency Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) Technical Working Group.
Baguio has already relaxed the requirement for visitors to book their itineraries with a DOT-accredited tour agency. Guests, however, are still required to book in a DOT-accredited hotel which has been issued a Certificate of Authority to Operate.
“Now that we have an actual visitor count, the city has an important reference point and valuable feedback on how to move forward from this initial opening period,” said Romulo Puyat in her opening remarks during the meeting. “The Ridge and Reef Project is one of the pioneering efforts to get our industry back on track, and the whole country is watching closely. Everyone’s determination to get the job done responsibly has been truly inspiring,” she added.
Ilocos Norte has also started accepting tourists from the NCR and the rest of Luzon on October 15, while Ilocos Sur has announced they would do the same starting November 15.
Meanwhile, the DOT welcomed the amended guidelines from the IATF-EID allowing the movement of persons traveling between areas under general community quarantine (GCQ) and modified GCQ.
The IATF-EID also approved the recommendation gradually allowing individuals between 15 years old and 65 years old to leave their residences.
In a news statement, Romulo Puyat said, “These new policies support the DOT’s programs aimed at rebuilding the tourism industry to bring back lost jobs and livelihoods and stir local economies.”
She added, the amended guidelines will empower LGUs to responsibly reopen their respective destinations to more areas outside their province or region with the minimum health and safety measures in place. “The flexible travel movements, however, do not mean that we will be relaxing our health standards. We will continue to work with the LGUs in enforcing safety protocols and enhanced hygiene measures in all sectors of the tourism industry.”