Islands Group opens Talima Waterpark

CEBU, Philippines - The Islands Group of Companies has opened its latest tourism-facility project, the Talima Adventure and Waterpark in Barangay Talima, Olanggo Island.

Islands Group chief executive officer (CEO) Jay Aldeguer told The FREEMAN yesterday that the opening of the facility last weekend brought about at least 300 people availing of the different adventure services initially offered by the park, just in one day.

“We registered much more than expected,” Aldeguer said.

The Islands Group of Companies, the operator of Islands Banca Cruise is investing P30 million for the creation of Cebu’s first water island-based water adventure park at Barangay Talima.

The project has three phases, every phase will incur the company at least P10 million investment.

The facility, which spans 1.5-hectare of land and water, will offer both land and water adventure activities from kayaking, rock climbing, “glamour camping,” among others.

A major attraction for the water adventure is the inflatable, which are US-certified for safety. It is ideal for use among children and adults.

“We hope to formally open the facility soon. We are just waiting for DOT secretary Ace Durano to come back from Europe to grace the formal opening ceremony of the park. But we started the soft opening already last weekend,” Aldeguer said.

“For Cebu to compete in both tourism and travel, we need to constantly develop new products and facilities. The Talima Adventure and Waterpark is, I believe, the only one of its kind in this part of the country,” said Aldeguer.

The Talima Adventure Park will also support the company’s Islands Banca Cruises choices of offerings for island hopping packages.

Other than being an additional attraction for Cebu, Aldeguer highlighted that proceeds from the income generated will be apportioned specifically for the protection and preservation of the Talima Marine Sanctuary.

Olanggo Island, of which Barangay Talima is situated, is popular for its bird sanctuary where over 100 bird species are found.

“We want people who come to not only appreciate the facility but to be more educated and proactive in preserving the country’s marine life. There will be educational tours that will be incorporated in the tour package,” Aldeguer added.

Barangay Talima, which has 168,000 square kilometers of land area has 5,677 residents as of the 2008 census, where fishing is its main livelihood.

Earlier, Durano lauded the establishment of the Talima Adventure and Water Park, saying Cebu is set to become more dynamic with the addition of adventure and water park facility.

Durano said that what Cebu needs now, is to provide wider options of attraction and tourism related activities, and taking advantage of growing adventure tourists worldwide could benefit Cebu’s edge in tourism.

“This innovative product will enhance the tourist experience of Cebu. Cebu must continue to evolve as a destination in order to stay on top,” Durano said.

The DOT secretary noted that that in the United States alone, adventure tourism is a US$450 million industry. The Philippines, which has ample of sites that can maximize this type of activity attraction, as it can generate good tourism revenue, while providing local residents, especially rural people to earn livelihood from tourism.