Capitol to push for lower hotel rates

CEBU, Philippines - Despite the stance of the National Organizing Committee for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference that there are no irregularities in the increase of the hotel rates in Cebu, the provincial government will continue to push for a much lower rates.

Vice Governor Agnes Magpale said the Capitol will continue to request hotel owners to adjust the price in favor of the APEC delegates.

“But we respect (NOC’s statement)… Ang NOC man gyod nasayod niini,” Magpale told reporters. No date has been set yet for the meeting.

Ambassador Marciano Paynor Jr., director general of the APEC 2015, said in a statement that the significant increase of hotel rates in Cebu are just aligned with hotel’s global standards.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for International Economic Relations Laura Q. del Rosario, who chairs the APEC 2015 Senior Officials’ Meeting, disclosed in a recent APEC media briefing that delegates are complaining that some hotels in Cebu raised their prices by 120 percent from the published rates.

A superior room rate, for instance, went to P13, 350, which is more than double of what was published online at P5, 800 as of August 5 this year.

Magpale, who sits as chairperson of the Provincial Tourism Council, is worried of its effect on the tourism industry in Cebu. She said foreign visitors might shun high-end hotels in Cebu for being expensive.

She assured that “they would do everything” to address the issue on exorbitant hotel rates in Cebu. She earlier said the province would ask the hotel owners to lower the rates because the 120 percent increase is “too much” and “unjustifiable.”

“Mao na atong gipaninguha nga dili moabot adto’ng amount,” she told reporters in a previous interview, adding that they also wanted to protect the image of Cebu.

She said that she only heard explanation from hotel owners on how they came up with the rates, not on the inflation. Cebu will also play host to over 3, 000 delegates from APEC member-economies starting August 22 to September 6 for the third Senior Officials’ Meeting.

Four ministerial meetings are also set to be held in Cebu. These are on structural reform on September 7 to 8, finance on September 10 to 11, transportation on October 8 to 10, and energy on October 12 to 14.

The meetings will be held at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino, Cebu City Marriott Hotel, Radisson Blu Hotel-Cebu, and Shangri-La’s Mactan Resort and Spa. — (FREEMAN)