Boracay hotels back in business

ILOILO CITY  , Philippines  —  It’s back to business for several hotels and resorts on Boracay Island.

One week before the scheduled reopening on Oct. 26, the Compliant Association of Boracay (CAB) reported that the 50 percent occupancy rate for the 68 hotels accredited by the Department of Tourism (DOT) on the island had been breached.

But reports said some tourists had a hard time looking for accommodations.

“There are still available rooms offered by DOT-accredited hotels. (Perhaps they’re working on) a certain budget. The fully booked hotels could be the ones classified as lower-end or those with 20 rooms and below,” CAB president Lauren Molina explained.

“The difficulty in finding accommodation may occur if establishments book guests even without DOT accreditation. Afterwards, they move the tourists to accredited hotels,” Molina said in a mix of English and Filipino, adding that this practice needs to be probed.

Molina said CAB hopes for more hotels and resorts to get DOT accreditation when Boracay reopens.

“By Oct. 22, we expect that DOT will again release an additional list of compliant hotels and resorts,” Molina added.

Aside from complying with Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) guidelines, hotels must also comply with the requirements set by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) for them to operate.

Molina said there were cases of DENR compliant establishments, but which were not compliant with DILG. “So, they still got no accreditation with the DOT,” he said.

Molina said those who want to visit Boracay could check the DOT website http://www.tourism.gov.ph/ for the list of compliant establishments.

“I think everyone is doing their part to be compliant. They still have a week to get their accreditation before Boracay reopens,” Molina said.

“We expected that majority of other businesses will be part of (CAB). It’s not saying that (we’re the chosen few or we are) special, but we’re just following the rule of law. So, the more people (who) could join our group, the better,” Molina said.

CAB is working hard so the island resort will not have to be shuttered again, Molina said.

“We will keep pushing for compliance,” Molina added.

While CAB sees Oct. 26 as a good beginning, especially for compliant establishments, Molina said they need the majority to pass the standards.

The Boracay Interagency Task Force (BITF) has cleared 46 more establishments to operate, translating to a total of 115 with 5,365 rooms.

“We would like to remind the public that only the Boracay island accommodation establishments that are compliant with the requirements of the DENR, (DILG) and accredited by the DOT are allowed to accept booking reservations and operate from Oct. 26 onwards,” the BITF said in a joint statement yesterday.

Earlier, hotels given the green light by DOT have around 3,519 rooms, enough to accommodate 6,405 tourists.

Meanwhile, the DOT set the maximum number of tourists a day in Boracay at 19,215.

The BITF advised non-compliant establishments to delete or put on hold all online promotions and related collaterals.

“The actions of these non-compliant establishments in soliciting and/or accepting booking reservations (despite the lack of clearance to open) may be considered deceptive and may subject them to civil liability/suits,” BITF added.

Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat earlier said she is hoping to add more accredited establishments as there are a lot of tourists who want to visit Boracay.

“It is an honor for our destinations to be voted once again in the Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards. This serves as an invitation to the tourists in time for the winter vacation,” Puyat said in a statement.

“We would like to take this opportunity to tell our tourists to manage their expectations on Boracay’s soft opening. We also encourage them to be mindful and responsible tourists of the island,” Puyat added.

Inspecting other resorts

The DILG will inspect other resorts in the country to ensure that they reach the standards of Boracay, which has been rehabilitated by the government.

“We will conduct inspections in all other resorts across the country to ensure that these tourist destinations also comply with existing environmental laws,” DILG officer-in-charge Eduardo Año said in a statement yesterday.

Año earlier said they want to make the world-famous island as the gold standard for all tourist destinations in the country.

“Those that will be found negligent and remiss on environmental compliance will not be tolerated and will be made accountable, just like what we did to Boracay,” he said.

Año said they are initially looking at tourist destinations in Palawan and Bohol as the next targets for inspection and rehabilitation.

“We are looking at Palawan and Bohol but no definite timeline yet as we are focused on the soft opening of Boracay,” he said in a text message.

Notice and reminder

DENR Undersecretary Sherwin Rigor yesterday said a scheduling system for boats servicing the Caticlan-Boracay route will be adopted.

Rigor added that while there is no plan to reduce the number of boats plying the route, trips will be regulated through the system.

The DENR stressed that among the safety measures to be observed are “no dry docking, no anchorage except in designated mooring areas and no discharging of water from hull.”

Boat repairs will also be prohibited around the island “so as not to contribute oil and other mineral petroleum” to the waters, Rigor said.

At the same time, the DENR said water activities will be temporarily suspended or restricted to allow the rehabilitation of marine and coastal ecosystems in the island.

Officials are reportedly completing a biodiversity assessment to designate marine sanctuaries and regulate water zones for water sports activities and swimming.

Rigor added that the 30-meter no0build zone policy along the beach, including a regulation on sandcastle making, will also be strictly implemented to ensure that there will be more space for beach-goers.

For its part, the Boracay unit of Ayala-led Manila Water Co. Inc. will continue its services and operations despite permit revocation by the local government unit (LGU).

Boracay Island Water Co. Inc. maintained that there was no actual revocation of permit and doing so would put all efforts of the government and the private sector to rehabilitate the island to waste.

“I think this is just a miscommunication within the LGU. We were given until December and it is an ongoing compliance. We have no idea why the sudden revocation,” Boracay Water general manager and chief operating officer Joseph Michael Santos told The STAR.

“The Boracay Interagency Task Force is already resolving this. They are trying to invalidate and not push through with that. They understand that this is very damaging because the island itself relies too much on our services,” Santos added.

Last week, the Municipality of Malay through Mayor Ceciron Cawaling issued an order that revoked the business permit of the company due to its failure to secure an environmental sanitation clearance (ESC).

“We provided an oath of undertaking last month and the regional health unit granted us until Dec. 3 to comply,” Santos claimed.

Issued by the Department of Health, the ESC proves that sewerage treatment plants function well and that sludge materials are properly disposed of.

Cebu Pacific Air reminded those with booked flights to Caticlan and Kalibo that they would be requested to show proof of confirmed hotel accommodations before being allowed to board their flights to Boracay.

Only those with confirmed reservations in establishments accredited by the DOT, DENR and DILG will be allowed to enter the island.

More information on accredited establishments can be found at facebook.com/DepartmentofTourism or @TourismPHL on Twitter. – With Emmanuel Tupas, Rhodina Villanueva, Louise Maureen Simeon, Catherine Talavera, Rudy Santos

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