10% rise in tourist arrivals here seen despite travel ban advisories

Tourism Secretary Joseph Mari "Ace" Durano has remained confident that the country will achieve its projected 10 percent increase on national traffic of foreign arrivals.

Department of Tourism-7 director Patria Aurora Roa conveyed Durano's optimism in the weekly 888 News Forum at Port Seafood Restaurant yesterday. This despite the travel advisories issued by the United States, United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia against traveling to the Philippines due to a terror threat.

"We are used to travel advisories, every year we get travel advisories warning citizens of particular countries from refraining to visit the Philippines," according to Roa.

The terror threat has been named as the reason behind the ASEAN Summit's postponement to January, but national organizers refuted this and stressed the major consideration was the physical safety of the heads of state who were due to arrive at about the same time typhoon Seniang would hit Cebu.

"As far as I can remember, in all my 13 years of service here, I have never received any report from the hotel sector that their bookings have dropped even by ten percent in spite of the travel advisories," Roa said. Further, Roa said there was an 18 percent increase of foreign tourist arrivals last year. While it is true that the hotel industry has been affected with the summit's postponement as accommodations have been cancelled, the same hotels have promised to still accommodate the heads of governments and other foreign delegations when the summit pushes through in January.

In order to offset the cancellation of bookings due to the summit's postponement, Roa said the hotels are now offering promo rates and opening their doors to their regular and new clients that they turned down before due to the summit.

Roa also said in spite of the travel advisories, there was no cancellation of bookings after the 15th of December where Koreans remain Cebu's top market followed by the Japanese.

Although Japanese tourists are easily disturbed by travel advisories, Roa said there was no cancellation of chartered flights from Japan to Cebu after the summit. - Gregg M. Rubio/MEEV