DOT: Cagayan de Oro and Region X can be RP´s top tourism destinations

The man responsible for the spectacular turnaround of Philippine tourism believes Cagayan de Oro and nearby destinations can become the country´s top tourism destinations with the scheduled commissioning of the Laguindingan Airport in 2012 as an international entry point as envisioned by the Department of Transportation and Communications. (DOTC).

"One reason for the growth of tourism in the country is our adventure/eco-tourism, culture, and culinary heritage, " said Sec. Joseph Ace Durano during a press conference following the 13th Kumbira Culinary Show and Live Competitions at the Atrium, Limketkai Center, Cagayan de Oro Thursday, August 13th. "I think there´s no region in the country today which can match Cagayan de Oro and Northern Mindanao in these niche markets."

After rising 1.5 percent to hit a record 3.14 million tourist arrivals in 2008, the country´s tourism industry grew 10.33 percent to 1.3 million during the first quarter of 2009.

Growth has been even faster for the first half of the year, with tourist arrivals in the top 16 tourism destination topping 16.5 percent to almost four million, breaking all previous arrival records.

This, at a time when the A(H1N1) pandemic and global economic slowdown have adversely affected the global travel industry. In fact, the DOT earlier cautioned the global economic crisis would likely lead to a contraction in overseas tourism worldwide and forecast tourist arrivals in the Philippines this year would only range from zero to 1.9 percent, "depending on the recovery of key source markets".

DOT records show neither Cagayan de Oro nor any of its satellite destinations in Region 10 are included in the top 16 tourist destinations for the first semester of 2009, which includes Camarines Sur, Cebu, Boracay, Baguio, Davao, Puerto Galera, Bohol, Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, Ilocos Norte, Masbate, Camarines Norte, Puerto Princesa, Legaspi, Catanduanes, and Sorsogon.

"When I started as DOT secretary, tourism in the Philippines could not be properly described as Philippine tourism," Durano said. "Entry points for foreign tourists were only through Metro Manila and Cebu. But we are an archipelagic country with destinations north and south, east and west."

To push more domestic destination, the DOT strategy called for increasing access, opening other destinations to charter flights from Shanghai, Nanning, Guangzhou and Kunming in China, and Taipei and Kaohsiung from Taiwan. Instead of waiting for further investments to improve the country´s tourism facilities, the DOT focused on attracting tourists from destinations three to six hours from the Philippines.

To leapfrog expensive infrastructure upgrades needed to accommodate long-haul wide-body jets, the DOT focused on the easiest regional Asian destinations to open new international gateways in Kalibo, Laoag, Davao.

"Philippine tourism was in a rut and forever facing the chicken and egg situation: do we build the infrastructure first, or focus on marketing to bring in more tourists?" Durano asked.

Ultimately, the DOT decided it was better to have more tourists to encourage investors to expand their facilities, he said.

"The challenge is to maximize the volume now, the strategy to rally the spread," Durano said. Before he took over DOT, 90% of incoming foreign traffic was through direct flights to Metro Manila. This figure is now only 70% four years later.

The DOT strategy for growth called for spreading the traffic to Laoag, Clark and Subic in Luzon; Kalibo and Cebu in the Visayas and to Davao in Mindanao.

The DOT targeted charter operations with maximum flight durations of six hours, needing only medium sized jets like the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 which can land in more regional airports.

"All we need is an airport," Durano stressed. "Now Shanghai, Korea flights fly straight to Kalibo; Hong Kong and Singapore to Davao; Russia and China to Cebu. These are the fastest growing tourist markets looking for new routes."

"Your region can focus on attracting tourists from ASEAN, China, Korea, Australia which are among the fastest growing tourism markets in the world today," Durano noted.

The Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area should be an especially favorable market with the recent appointment of Region 10 Tourism Director Catalino Chan III as BIMP-Eaga sub-country coordinator for tourism, he added.

"We have to accept reality – tourism already generates 10% of our total employment," Durano said. "Tourism is now at a point that it cannot be ignored."

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