Camp John Hay beckons (Part II)

We continue presenting to you the total leisure package that Camp John Hay now offers, especially to those who wish to spend time in the country’s "summer capital." Last week we centered on the Camp John Hay Golf Course and Club House. Today we give you an idea of what’s presently regarded as the best accommodations that the "city of pines" can offer.

Camp John Hay Manor

Whether you come up to Baguio for golf, for sightseeing or just to cool off, an overnight stay is inevitable. And after the unfortunate and tragic demise of the historical Pines Hotel in a fire and the modern-day Hyatt Terraces during the city’s unforgettable killer quake. The Camp John Hay Manor now stands unchallenged in having the best and the classiest accommodations that the city can offer.

The manor’s architecture follows the log cabin style with a lot of wood and of course, a lot of pine. The two-sided fireplace that meets you as you enter the lobby while the other side warms up the bar as predictable conversational piece. But no worry for the environmentalists, it burns on LPG, not wood.

Our gracious host, Mr. Heiner Maulbecker, the former Hyatt Terraces manager who now expertly runs both Manor and Clubhouse, expects to have all the targeted 200 rooms plus luxurious spa operational by October this year.

Presently there are four floors serviced by three elevators, with a total of 189 rooms. Of these, 112 are studio-type with double beds and 21 with king-size beds. There are 44 one-bedroom suites and 12 two-bedroom suites, which are luxurious home-away-from-home accommodations. Each room is equipped with cable TV. There are also IDD-NDD phones that have Internet access for those who can’t leave the office behind. A refrigerator is standard and in some rooms a microwave oven and an in-room safe.

We learned that the most popular choice is the studio-type, where a family of four can comfortably stay sharing two large queen-sized beds. At a minimal charge, the spacious room can still accommodate another bed for a possible fifth person in the group. This type goes for a very reasonable rate of P2,500 a night.

But Heiner, the friendly German GM who has much of the Pinoy demeanor, said that they might soon have a discounted promo of only P3,000 for a two-night stay.

Golf-playing guests of the manor who are non-members of the Camp John Hay Golf Club are privileged to play at discounted rates. This is a real come-on for the club-swinging aficionados who stay at the manor during occasional visits to Baguio.

Nights are soothing at Camp John Hay Manor. One can opt to walk leisurely at its large patio overlooking some pine tree studded ridges and some parts of the popular Mines View Park, savor the crisp air, work up an appetite worthy of Le Souffle’s cuisine, which is exclusively served at their main dining. Always consistent in its quality, the F&B services run by legendary Billy King offer top-notch selections like the sinigang na sugpo I had that evening. The citrus-flavored broth with a hint of tangy spice and plump prawns and crispy Baguio veggies swimming in the broth was comfort food at its most soothing, perfect for a cool Baguio evening. A cup of coffee, then a goblet of warmed brandy or superb cognac as you listen to great music at the nearby Piano Bar of the Manor, where music loving guests never fail to congregate for fun-filled sing-alongs that merrily last through the night. There is still the promise of a comfortable bed and bath to look forward to before calling it a remarkable day.

When it’s time to go, Heiner promises that very soon their presently well-stacked Deli Shop, which carries a wide array of imported sausages and cheese, will also offer a trademark "pasalubong," like raisin bread is to the Baguio Country Club. It seems that we can hold our breath, as the wait will not be too long.

Baguio is still everyman’s destination in the Philippines, a place for all seasons, and for all the right reasons. One doesn’t even have to find a reason not to go the long drive. Five thousand feet above sea level is that much farther away from the aggravations, the heat and the pollution of the city. Camp John Hay Golf Club and Manor were certainly a delectable bonus.

Big embarrassment for President GMA?

Word is ripe in the local business community that a big lobby group is pressuring the government into coming up with new rules in the country’s Car Development Program that could put an abrupt end to the current phenomenal and unprecedented sales of the Honda CR-V.

Similarly, reliable sources have it that foreseeable consequences of the possible success of the lobby would be a very embarrassed President of the Philippines and a very mad crowd from a list of CR-V buyers patiently waiting for their reserved units.

It appears that the trouble stems from the tremendous response of the local market to the highly competitively priced Honda CR-V. The low price offering is due to the excise tax exemption that the government granted the model based on existing rules and regulations of the present Car Development Program.

Now word has it that the lobby group is hell bent on stripping Honda Cars Philippines of the tax exemption.

If the lobby succeeds it would mean that the Honda CR-V would be taxed more than P200,000 per unit, which the car firm would not absorb lest they close shop and cause the loss of thousands of jobs in the plant. If Honda would not absorb the added cost due to tax, then those that have reserved and waiting in line would have to do so. And that’s going to be the big, big trouble coming from about 3,000 CR-V buyers now patiently in the queue.

Now the other consequence would really make President GMA very uncomfortable, especially after a statement in the papers where she was quoted as saying that "she may have erred politically but not economically." Reliable sources from Honda Cars Philippines say that should the lobby succeed, it would definitely jeopardize the P1-billion investment that Honda is poised to sink into the country, which the President herself proudly announced after her recent trip to Japan.

Despite a groundbreaking ceremony scheduled in August, the Honda home office in Japan may still scrap the billion-peso investment for a new transmission manufacturing plant, which is geared towards export to Europe, the US and the rest of the world. The sources say that the government’s constant flip-flopping in policies may just convince their home office to put up a dramatically down-sized local operation that would just handle the sale of CBUs or completely built units and close the plant. Not a very good prospect for the labor front.

In the midst of the prospect of increased prices, panic buying for the Honda CR-V goes unabated as evidenced by a rapidly lengthening list of reservations. Talk about luck.

The automotive industry is indeed alive and kicking (each other?).

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