Not fun in Phl without roads, ports - Baguilat

MANILA, Philippines - No amount of catchy sloganeering and advertising will promote tourism in the country unless there is reliable infrastructure support, Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat said yesterday.

“It’s about time that the government put its money where its campaigns are and invest in badly needed infrastructure that would make it easier for both local and foreign tourists to see the country’s many attractions,” he said.

“To really make it more fun for tourists in the Philippines, tourism infrastructure, particularly access to tourism areas (roads, air and seaports and facilities), must be drastically improved,” he said.

Baguilat added that while the Aquino administration, through the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and Department of Tourism, is allocating more funds for tourism infrastructure, the amounts are not enough.

He cited the rice terraces in his province as an example.

He said his province, because of its rice terraces, is one of the prime tourist destinations in the north.

“And yet, roads to Banaue, Mayoyao and Hungduan, which have the most beautiful of these heritage sites, are not yet fully paved and the DPWH allocations are not adequate,” he lamented.

Aside from roads leading to these sites, he said the airport in neighboring Bagabag town in Nueva Vizcaya has to be improved to entice carriers to fly tourists there.

“The improvement of the airport will not only benefit Ifugao but also other tourist destinations in Northern Luzon such as Sagada in Mountain Province,” he said.

“Ifugao continues to attract many foreign tourists and we get regular package tours of Koreans and Europeans in our eco-tours but the common complaint is the difficult access. If we improve that, then we will surely get more tourists,” he said.

He suggested that the government useits tourism and airport receipts to rehabilitate roads, airports and facilities in tourist destinations.