Tourism 101 with Phineas Alburo

Despite his retirement in 2009, former Department of Tourism Undersecretary Phineas Alburo still finds himself busy with tourism matters as a private citizen.

Aside from doing consultancy work, he is also involved in the Institute of Tourism and Hospitality Management at the University of Southern Philippines Foundation where he is a part-time instructor.

And the former undersecretary is happy and contented that despite being retired, he can still help shape the tourism and hospitality management industry in Cebu. After all, tourism is what he does best, being one of those who started it all in Cebu.

Tourism back then…

Although an engineering graduate of USP, the 20-year-old Phineas found himself working for the Board of Travel and Tourist Industry, the old name for the DOT back during the time of former President Diosdado Macapagal.

“I have been in the tourism industry since 1964. In fact, I opened the Board of Travel and Tourism Industry office here in Cebu. And that was a time when there were no tourists here yet,” he said laughing as he recalled the good old days.

According to Alburo, the first tourists in Cebu were Japanese, usually children and widows of soldiers, and Americans, also relatives of soldiers who were assigned in Subic and Clark.

There were no cruise ships then only freighters but these also had a few cabins that carried tourists, he said. “So what I did was I go up to these ships, talk about Cebu to those onboard and then invite them to go around.”

It was in 1967, he said, when the first tourist ship arrived in Cebu, the SS Statendam, which had 400 American and European tourists onboard.

“Nakuyawan ko ato oi because I was just fresh out of college and I was expected to entertain these tourists. Of course I had my boss, si Judge Binghay, the father of the monsignor, but he told me to take care of the situation,” he said. What made him handle the situation quite well, he added, was his common sense, practical knowledge about Cebu and his love for the place, and his love for interacting with people.

“The first thing I did was train tour guides because there weren’t any at that time. So I trained Meding (Remedios) Canizares and her friends Mrs. Uybengkee and Mrs. Aquino. They were the original tour guides of Cebu. We didn’t have licenses at that time though, kay kami kami ra man. I had to train tour guides who will take care of the tourists,” he said.

The present day tourism industry

Tourism and hospitality management has become one of the biggest industries in the Cebu and in the country. Proof of this are the growing population of schools and colleges offering tourism-related courses.

“When Odette Jereza of USPF invited me to join them, I was really happy because I can continue to share what I know about the industry. One of my contributions was to change the name of the college from HRM and BS Tourism to the Institute of Tourism and Hospitality Management,” Alburo shared, adding that he also made several suggestions to the curriculum to better prepare the students on the challenges in the industry, as well as the establishment of the Southern Skies Boutique Hotel, where the students will get to train.

“I got the idea of establishing a hotel where the students can train from the UP Asian Institute of Tourism, which also opened a hotel that is being served by students,” he said.

The former tourism undersecretary said he prefers to teach introductory subjects, where he can mold students at an early stage. “The introductory subjects are where you can encourage students to pursue their studies. But, it is also a good time to discourage, if needed,” he said and went on to explain that the tourism industry requires common sense and personality and when some students do not meet these requirements, it is better to tell them early.

“Like for example those students nga wala ka-abot ug five feet ang height. Dili man na madala! It is very important to meet the height requirement. Dili ka makita kung i-assign ka sa frontdesk! Then nay student nga dili comfortable mo interact with people. Dili sad na pwede,” he emphasized.

Despite the mushrooming of schools offering tourism-related courses, Alburo said there will always be a place for graduates, whether here in the country or abroad.

“Tourism is endless. There is a fast turnover of workers in HRM. Unlike nursing nga manobra ang graduates unya walay trabaho,” he said and added that to keep the tourism industry alive and flourishing, we have to raise our standards.

“We should forget our Filipino trait of ‘pwede na yan.’ We can’t raise our standards if we keep on saying pwede na yan. Those in the hospitality industry must strive to give the best service. Unya ang mga clients sad, must complain if they feel that they are not given the best service. If you don’t complain, you will never know if you are right or wrong,” he stressed.

Another aspect that students should improve on is their English. “Kulang kaayo og reading and comprehension ang mga students. If you want to learn correct English, stop watching these telenovelas and stop texting because dili na hinuon makahibalo ug spelling. If we are in the hospitality industry, we must not settle to learn correct English. We have to learn first class English,” Alburo added.

“Tourism in general is a wonderful world. It is the only profession where you get to mix business with pleasure. But you have to love it and you have to be prepared for the many challenges. What I teach my students are the practical side of the industry, what I experienced in my 46 years in the industry. And these cannot be found in books,” he concluded.