Crimson Resort banks on rising local market

CEBU, Philippines - Posh resort Crimson Resort & Spa in Mactan, developed by Filinvest Land Inc. (FLI), is intensifying its grip on the growing domestic market while successfully attracting international travelers from all over the world.

The three-year-old resort, situated in a six-hectare property on Mactan island, is now registering an average of over 80 percent occupancy rate led by the Korean and Japanese leisure markets.

In an interview, the resort’s resident manager Kristofer Quadros said that with the strong interest among Filipinos to travel and explore different destinations in the Philippines, Crimson is taking advantage of this development by introducing more attractive packages for domestic guests.

In fact, the resort is holding mall-based promotional events to entice the local market and introduce the new triple-A resort in Cebu.

“It’s nice to see a very healthy domestic market here [in the Philippines],” Quadros said, adding that because of this, the resort is aiming to increase the share of local guests, which now stands at 18 percent.

Just like any other hotels or resorts in Cebu, the occupancy rate for Crimson is largely driven by the Korean and Japanese leisure markets, he said, “however, it has seen a tremendous growth from the local leisure travelers, as well as the events and business- related functions.”

Crimson opened in 2010 with a total of 290 accommodation facilities, 40 of which are villa-type while 250 are standard rooms.

At present, the resort is attracting 70 percent leisure guests and 30 percent business-related bookings, said Jo Ann Castillo, the resort director for sales.

Aside from enticing the local market, Castillo said the resort is also strengthening its promotion to international markets for more MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibit) as international events are seen to drive strong occupancy rates for Cebu accommodation facilities.

Crimson is one of the newest resort facilities in Mactan, complementing the need for Cebu province to add more room accommodation as tourism sector is expected to hit higher double-digit growth in the next few years.

Cebu in particular is targeting to hit five million tourist arrivals in the next five years.

According to Quadros, although posh accommodation facilities are growing and investors are responding to the demand, tourism stakeholders, specifically the government, should further work together in developing more attractions and tourism-related events.

Quadros suggested that a much stronger support for infrastructure development is needed for Cebu, as the Philippines is slowly carving its name in the world’s tourism market, now becoming one of the favorite Asian tourism destinations.

Support infrastructure like efficient airports, seaports and wider roads and other developments should be place to  encourage tourists to come back and make their travel experiences more memorable, he said.

Currently, about 65 percent of their guests are Koreans while domestic travelers make up 18 percent of their total market. The remaining 20 percent is shared by Europeans, Japanese, and Chinese markets. /JMD (FREEMAN)