Senator Nancy Binay urged the Department of Tourism to provide all the necessary promotional, training or financial support to all tourism-ready sites as travel restrictions are continually being eased.
According to Binay, the DOT should start enabling the tourism industry by extending marketing support to recover market share, bring back visitor confidence and awareness, rebuild human resource by providing training, and help local counterparts in the LGUs in updating their local tourism plans to be compliant to the new normal.
“Naniniwala ako na once na-meet at naisaayos ang key performance indices sa tourism industry in the new normal setting, malaki ang tsansa na magtuloy-tuloy ang pagsigla ng ekonomiya ng bansa.”
“Naniniwala ako na once na-meet at naisaayos ang key performance indices sa tourism industry in the new normal setting, malaki ang tsansa na magtuloy-tuloy ang pagsigla ng ekonomiya ng bansa. This is why I am urging the Department of Tourism to provide all the necessary promotional support through marketing and advertising specially to tourism-ready destinations, at suportahan din through trainings ang mga staff ng mga tour establishment para maging fully-compliant as far as health protocols are concerned,” said the chair the Senate Committee on Tourism.
“DOT counterparts in the provinces may start mapping tourism sites and establishments to check their compliance.”
The legislator noted that DOT counterparts in the provinces may start mapping tourism sites and establishments to check their compliance when it comes to health protocol standards, structural/configurational retrofitting, staff orientation, and contact tracing measures.
In her visit to Baguio, the lawmaker cited the recently concluded Panagbenga 2022 Baguio Flower Festival which managed to attract 45,000 tourists during its last weekend alone.
“We visited Baguio and La Trinidad during the last weekend of Panagbenga. We saw how tourism boosted the business climate of the city and how eager tourists are to visit the locations even in the absence of the usual events like street dancing and the flower float parades,” the lady senator pointed out.
“At nakakatuwa na bumalik na rin yung mga trabaho at negosyo sa turismo. I believe Philippine tourism needs to be revved up through well thought-out promotions para matulungan nating bumalik ang buong industriya. Pero kailangan din ng industriya ng tulong para maging mas resilient at masabing ‘tourism-ready’ tayo in the new normal context,” she pointed out.
According to the Baguio Public Information Office, an estimated up to 22,000 visitors arrived everyday in Baguio since March 25.
