RP lauded for success of ASEAN Tourism Forum

The Philippines’ hosting of the 2006 ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) in Davao City is reaping praises from its thousands of delegates and the foreign media.

Among them is Christina Liadis of the China Travel Service, a China and Hong Kong-based travel firm with 20 overseas branches in Europe, Southeast Asia, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

Liadis expressed delight at how she was welcomed and assisted from the airport in Manila to her hotel in Davao City and all the way down to every ATF event.

"The ATF’s opening ceremony was fantastic," Liadis said, referring to the 500 stage performers who showcased the city’s rich and diverse culture in songs and dances.

This colorful and spectacular performance was held at the Central Bank Convention Center and the adjacent The Venue to formally kick off the ATF, which Liadis said was conducted superbly by the Philippine Host Committee and the Davao City Host Council.

"Everything is going smoothly. I also had a wonderful time at the Malagos Garden Resort and the Philippine Eagle Center in Davao City and the Paradise Resort in the Garden City of Samal," she said.

Her assessment was echoed by Singaporean Jonathan Chia of the Panoly Resort Boracay, saying ATF 2006 was well organized, fully attended, and outstandingly productive.

"It is good to bring the international buyers and media here so they will know that (Davao City) is very peaceful and safe, contrary to the impression created by negative travel advisories," Chia said.

The ATF, which ended yesterday, included a travel exchange (Travex) for one-on-one meetings and other business activities between exhibitors/sellers and buyers of tour packages and travel services from all over the world.

"ATF’s Travex has attracted buyers who are the top sellers in their respective countries, and that means good business for our Boracay operations," Chia said.

Similarly, journalist Ted Davis of the Canadian Travel Press expressed pleasant surprise at the staging of Travex at the NCCC mall.

"This is the first time for me to see much of the ATF events being held in a vast retail establishment, particularly the holding of press conferences at the cinema by national tourism organizations, and it is a truly great idea," he said.

Davis said he was amazed at how Christians, Muslims and various ethnic groups co-exist peacefully in Davao City despite their differences not only in religion, but also in culture, language and traditions.

"This diversity is amazing and wonderful. The services are great, especially at the press center," he said.

Likewise extolling Davao’s hosting of the ATF, Mukesh Mohan Goel, director of Oriental Travels Pty Ltd., said, "The opening ceremony and all the other events are marvelous. The travel arrangements, tours and the entire ATF are very impressive. The people are always smiling. The location, resorts, infrastructure, transportation are all okay."