Wanted: New RP location for "Survivor"

So, yes, the stories and rumors are true that the country has become a favorite location of Survivor. Department of Tourism Secretary Ace Durano himself confirmed that not only one but five Survivor editions produced by different countries have been shot in the Philippines, particularly in the Caramoan Peninsula in Camarines Sur, since mid of last year. (One Survivor edition was shot in Palawan in 2007.)

This adventure reality TV series has brought global attention to what has been dubbed as the best-kept secret of the Bicol region. There are names of destinations that roll off the tongue like overused expressions but not Caramoan. Even Sec. Durano admitted that he wasn’t aware of the beauty of Caramoan.

In blogs written by locals, Caramoan is described as home to pristine white beaches, deep gorges, limestone formations, caves, inland lakes, and a rough and rocky terrain. In other words, exotic enough environs that have met the discriminating taste of a show known to showcase the remotest yet most beautiful corners of the world.

But how was Caramoan exactly found and thrust into the limelight?

It all started with Survivor France. After shooting a season in El Nido, Palawan, people from Survivor France scouted for another setting in the country. With the help of DoT, which provided them with transportation, they chanced upon Caramoan’s Gota Beach.

They were immediately impressed, but the purity of the place proved to be a major problem. There were no amenities to begin with that can accommodate such a huge production. There was also that problem of accessibility. It can only be reached through water transport, but even boats were hard to come by.

Good thing was, Durano said, the provincial government headed by Lray Villafuerte rose to the occasion. They invested in cottages and cabanas, among other things, to house the hundreds of crew members. Also an airport is now in the works. DoT, on the other hand, helped in the transportation and fuel expenses.

The ROI must have been immediate as the Survivor production reportedly rented the area for 3 months last year to the tune of 40 million pesos. According to DoT Usec. Edu Jarque, the exposure translated into actual tourism numbers with France now ranking 3rd among the top sources of international tourists in the country (to think that a recent survey identified French people as the least nationality to vacation, owing in part to the fact that beautiful sights come aplenty in their country).

Since then, Caramoan has provided the backdrop for the Survivor editions of Turkey, Serbia, and the latest of which is Israel. The latter extended the number of episodes to give more media mileage to the country. With that, Usec. Jarque said they have readied the tourism packages in anticipation of the influx of tourists once the season airs in Israel come October.

There’s another one shooting at the moment, but it’s supposed to be a secret...okay, it’s Survivor Bulgaria. Durano said that Caramoan has been practically booked year-round and closed off to local tourists.

France, on the other hand, will be back this September and since any Survivor franchise is not allowed to feature a set location twice (in the same way that Survivor cannot shoot in its own country), France will be looking for other potential set locations around the country’s 7,707 islands. When Usec. Jarque asked for suggestions, we thought of the mystical island of Siquijor (Survivor: Siquijor—don’t you think the tag has a nice ring to it?), but Jarque said it might be too compact for their taste. The French Survivor is looking for a cluster of islands since the castaways will be in, pardon the pun, isle-solation.

Still and all, it’s amazing how these foreign shows have seen the beauty of our country that many of us, Filipinos, have missed or perhaps, not really cared to see. That Survivor France is coming back to the country only shows that they believe that there’s still a lot of beautiful sites in the country waiting to be discovered. Then again, why wait for Survivor when we can start looking.