Cebu, Bohol tourism players told: Brace for more visitors

More tourists are expected in Cebu amid the impending temporary closure of Boracay Island, which will undergo environmental rehabilitation.
CDN FILE PHOTO

IMPENDING BORACAY CLOSURE

Prepare for the expected influx of tourists in Cebu and Bohol.

This is Director Shalimar Tamano of the Department of Tourism in Central Visayas (DOT-7) advice to local government officials, companies and persons involved in the tourism industry in the region amid the impending temporary closure of Boracay Island.

Tamano made the call as Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo earlier cited Cebu and Bohol as alternative tourism destinations for tourists, who might have to cancel their scheduled trips to Boracay with the impending temporary closure.

Tamano said this would be an opportunity for the region to showcase its tourists spots.

“I think Bohol and Cebu are ready,” Tamano told Cebu Daily News in a phone interview on Monday.

However, he cited a couple of concerns that those in government and the tourism industry in these two islands should address: security and availability of rooms.

Tamano had been citing the need for additional rooms in both Cebu and Bohol especially with the opening of the new Terminal 2 of the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) on June which is expected to triple the number of tourists coming into the province.

At the same time, the targeted opening of the Panglao International Airport in the third quarter of the year is also seen to boost the number of tourists going directly to Bohol.

The inter-agency task force composed of the DOT, Department Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) has already recommended to President Rodrigo Duterte to close Boracay Island to tourism-related activities for six months starting on April 26.

After the closure, a state of calamity is expected to be declared over the three barangays in the 1,032-hectare island.

President Duterte has also publicly stated that he is determined to push for the island’s temporary closure.

Readiness, charm

Tamano, who was only appointed as the Tourism regional director of Central Visayas last January, said Cebu and Bohol have their own charms in captivating tourists.

He said he had been going around the four provinces in the region — Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor — to experience for himself the different tourist sites that the region could offer.

“The tourists will see another quality. We will not pretend to be Boracay because we are not. We have our own charm,” Tamano said.

He said he had just visited the different tourist spots in the southern area of Cebu and was personally captivated by the centuries-old churches in Carcar, Argao, Boljoon and Oslob.

He also noted many tourists in these tourist spots during his Monday visit to the south of Cebu.

“All the tourists are there. After they swim, they also look for something cultural,” Tamano said.

For his part, Cebu Provincial Tourism Office Joselito “Boboi” Costas said it will not be hard to promote Cebu as an alternative for tourists intending to visit Boracay.

“With so many beach destinations and flights including international, tourists will be coming here. Plus the ancillary activities related to sea, sun and sand tourism, we have shopping and cultural destinations as well,” Costas told Cebu Daily News in a phone interview.

However, Costas warned that Cebu should be ready and “mindful” with this expected influx of tourists.

He said that those involved in the tourism industry should be aware of the carrying capacity of the island — not just in terms of the environment, but also in terms of managing these tourists.

One way of doing this, he said, is to make sure that tourism frontliners and the rest of the workers in the tourism industry are competent.
At the same time, the facilities should also be good.

Support

In an Inquirer report, data from the DOT showed that about two million tourists visited Boracay in 2017. This number accounts for 34 percent of the 5.8 million tourists arrivals in all of Western Visayas.

Employment brought by Boracay’s tourism industry is also pegged at at least 19,031. This is around 68 percent of the total tourism-related employment in Western Visayas.

Private organizations composed of employers and workers, and local officials of Boracay have openly appealed to President Duterte not to order the shutdown of Boracay.

The government’s crackdown on establishments and those involved in the tourism industry in Boracay over violations of environmental laws and policies started after President Duterte himself labeled the island as a “cesspool.”

But for the Hotel, Resort, Restaurant Association of Cebu (HRRAC), more than anything, what erring establishments in Boracay need is support in order to put in place corrective measures.

“Those who are complying with the necessary requirements such as those from the DENR, those are okay. Those compliant are okay. For the non-compliant, I think the local government with the help of the private sector should help them,” said HRRAC President Carlo Suarez.

Suarez said that they would not want Boracay to be closed, but at the same time, Cebu should also be prepared for the influx of tourists that would be diverted from Boracay to Cebu.