Hotel, resort rates to double during Cebu APEC meetings

CEBU, Philippines - It looks like a delegates to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings in Cebu next month are going to pay double for their hotel.

Nishan Silva, Hotels, Resorts and Restaurants Association of Cebu board of trustees member, said that considering that it is now “peak season”, hotels and resorts rates would increase their room rates by 100 percent.

Silva explained that Koreans, Chinese and Japanese tourists typically arrive in Cebu also in August, boosting demand for hotel and resort accommodations.

Meanwhile, private and public agencies involved in the preparation for the APEC meetings, which happens from August 22 to September 15 this year, said they are now ready for the big event.

Judilyn Quiachon, Department of Tourism-7 supervising tourism operation officer, said during the AGIO-7 forum yesterday that Cebu has more space/rooms now that are available for the APEC delegates, their spouses and their staff.

Excluding their companions, 3,200 delegates are expected to join the APEC senior ministers’ meetings, which Silva said is the best opportunity for Cebuano restaurants to showcase their best cuisines.

As to traffic concerns, on the other hand, CITOM Executive Director Rafael Yap said there are thoroughfares that would be closed and some rerouting for public utility jeepneys would be implemented once APEC delegates would pass through the identified routes.

He said their traffic contingency measures is now based on a normal, working day and not on a declaration of a holiday.

“The senior ministers meeting is crucial because there are lots of meetings that entails transportation transfer,” Yap said.

Four hotels in Cebu City were designated as venues for the meetings.

Estee Marie Plunket, head of corporate affairs of the GMR-Megawide Cebu Airport Corporation, which operates the Mactan-Cebu International Airport, said their security  measures are now in place as they are their primary concern.

She said APEC delegates are expected to arrive on August 20 and the 900-square-meter airport APEC lounge, which can accommodate 500 people, is currently being readied for them.

Plunket said she has not received any list yet as to how many of the delegates will arrive on chartered or private planes.

“So far what I know is that they will be on board a commercial flight. But in case there are private planes, we have a designated place where they can park their private planes,” she said. — (FREEMAN)