Farm homestays get boost at summit

MANILA, Philippines - The country’s emerging farm and homestay sectors of the tourism industry got a major boost in the recently-concluded First Homestays of the World Summit held recently in Talisay City, Negros Occidental.

The three-day event fostered networking among individual homeowners, institutions and local governments involved in homestay programs across the country.

The summit was organized by the Department of Tourism (DOT), and the International School of Sustainable Tourism (ISST) with the support of Globe Telecoms.

ISST president Dr. Mina Gabor said the confab underscored the contribution of homestay to cross-cultural understanding and inclusive growth, especially in the countryside. 

The confab brought together international experts from Portugal, Spain, France Malaysia, the United States, Indonesia and the Philippines on how to organize homestays in areas where there is lack of accommodation facilities.

Foreign speakers included Malaysian tourism consultant Dr. Zainab Binti Khalifah, Turihab Board secretary Arq. Manuel José Costa de Carvalho e Sousa of Portugal, Rashidi Hasbullah of Malaysia’s Ministry of Tourism and Culture; Patrick Farjas of “Gites de France”, Jean-Luc Petit of France’s Alize Voyages & Adventures, and Yu Handoyo Benny of Indonesia’s Rumah Tana Baru.

The summit also tackled the business aspect, security and safety concerns, and upgrading homestay services to make them conform to global standards.

Gabor, who was a former tourism secretary, noted that homestay programs have been mainstreamed in many countries around the world, and Filipinos could take advantage of this trend in 2015 with the observance of the Visit Philippines Year which is expected to bring in a record number of tourists.

Gabor added that Negros Occidental was chosen host province because of the elements for a successful homestay experience – good organic food, hospitable hosts, availability of medical and security services, and accessibility of tourism sites and good guides.

The province has three key farm homestays which were visited by the summit dele-gates and speakers, namely, Rapha Valley in Don Salvador Benedicto, May’s Garden Homestay in Bacolod City, and Peñalosa Organic Farm in Victorias City.

The said facilities are among the most organized homestays which offer guests a back-to-basic farm learning experience, healthy food, family-friendly ambiance, and reasonable rates.

The conference served as follow-up to the Farm Tourism Conference held in May this year in Daet, Camarines Norte which recognized the country’s emerging agri-tourism industry.

The success of agri-based tourism both here and abroad has encouraged institutions and schools to venture into farm camps to promote food security, healthy living and alternative travel. Among these is the four-hectare Levesville Integrated Farm in San Jose, Negros Oriental which is run by the St. Paul University of Dumaguete City.

To assist prospective host families in setting up homestays, Gabor said that two entities – Homestay Philippines Inc. and Homestay Philippines Services Cooperative have been established to take care of the marketing and business concerns.

She noted that the conference started the process of creating a nationwide database for homestays to strengthen its marketing efforts.

The summit’s partner government agencies are the Provincial Government of Negros Occidental, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Tourism Promotions Board, the Tourism Infrastructure and Ecozone Authority (TIEZA), and the city governments of Bacolod, Victorias and Talisay.