‘Hilot’ receives int’l recognition
The country’s traditional hilot has officially made its mark internationally.
The Department of Tourism (DOT) has reported that hilot, the local version of touch therapy, has earned international recognition as “holistic treatment of the year.”
Tourism Secretary Joseph “Ace” Durano said the Philippine’s Mandala Spa and Villas’ Boracay Hilot Trilogy bagged the award during the recent 2007 Asia Spa Awards in Hong Kong.
“Citation of this magnitude indicates that our health and wellness destinations and services are definitely at par with world standards. They also open to us more opportunities in developing this type of industry,” Durano noted.
According to Durano, the Asia Spa Awards is one of the industry’s most esteemed recognitions in the Asia Pacific region and the resorts that take home the much-coveted trophy are deemed benchmarks for this fast-growing industry.
A panel of 28 judges, comprised of spa owners, wellness experts and authors, decided on the most outstanding treatments and most original spa destinations, Durano said.
He pointed out that Mandala Spa & Villas stood out prominently as the only Filipino independent business among the roster of winners dominated by Thailand-based establishments.
Located in a quiet and secluded area in Boracay, Mandala is one of the first luxury wellness centers in the country and is now steadily rising as one of the finest Asian destination spas.
Mandala offers a two-hour Hilot Trilogy session that combines three traditional healing therapies widely practiced in the
The other two therapies are dagdagay, of Cordilleran origin, which uses two bamboo or rattan sticks to stimulate the soles and cleanse the body from specific points on the feet, and the bentosa portion, which involves warmed glass cups that suction out toxins and improve circulation.
DOT is aggressively promoting hilot as alternative health treatment in marketing missions in
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