Own culture key to entice French travelers to Cebu

Cebu tourism stakeholders are encouraged to promote French culture here to attract a sizeable share of the French traveling market.

Promoting the French wine festival for instance is one of the several activities that should be taken into consideration by the tourism stakeholders.

"Filipinos and the French are in many ways alike. The French could very well adapt to the Filipino way of living," said Le Club President Bernard Flour said.

For his part, Consul of the Republic of France Michel Lhuillier said the booming tourism industry in the Philippines is in a "good position" to lure French tourists by "bringing a bit of the French culture to the Philippines."

"If there's anything that Filipinos and French have in common, it is the love for food and music," said Lhuillier.

Holding a wine festival, for instance, is one activity that could draw not only French nationals but also other foreign and local guests, Lhuillier added.

"French wine plays an important role in French identity and pride. The combination of French wine and the equally influential French gastronomy has been an important one," Flour said.

This November 29, Le Club, in cooperation with Marco Polo Plaza and the Department of Tourism (DoT) will hold for the second time in Cebu the Soiree Beaujolais, a French wine festival that is expected to gather more than 300 wine enthusiasts from Cebu.

In Manila, the Soiree Beaujolais has gathered over 1,000 guests last year, said Flour.

This traditional event has become a global race to be the first to serve the new wine of the harvest.

French wine is produced in several regions throughout France, on over 800,000 hectares of vineyards, and in a typical year between 50 and 60 million hectoliters of wine is produced, or some 7 to 8 billion bottles.

Flour said the Soiree Beaujolais is expected to heighten the interest of Filipinos about the French culture, which he considers beneficial in penetrating the French market.

French tourists, said Lhuillier, visit the Philippines, particularly in Cebu, for its beach resort destinations and their penchant for Asian cuisine.

DoT 7 data revealed a 42.25 percent increase of French visitors to Central Visayas in the first half of this year, or 5,047 from 3,548 the same period in 2007. French tourists to Cebu registered 2,996 from January to June 2008.

DoT 7 Director Dawnie Roa said the department has strongly considered France and the rest of Europe as emerging markets for the local tourism industry and vows to intensify promoting the Philippines to these destinations.

France, which is the number one tourist destination in the world, could be a good market to tap in terms of tourism partnership, while the Philippines is making tourism as one of the economic drivers amid the global recession, said United Nations -World Tourism Organization (UN-WTO) secretary general Francesco Frangialli, in an earlier interview.