Yap, DOT-7: Bohol needs more rooms for tourists

TAGBILARAN CITY, Philippines  — The Bohol tourism industry is still on top five most visited destinations in the country but sadly it lags behind other places in terms of room accommodations, according to Rep. Arthur Yap (3rd dist., Bohol).

This was confirmed by director Rowena Montecillo of the Department of Tourism-Region 7, who was with Yap as guests of the unveiling of the Bohol Products Exhibit held here for the Tigum Bol-anon sa Tibuok Kalibutan (TBTK) program, a grand homecoming of Boholanos from around the world..

Yap, in his speech, said Bohol must attract more investors to build more hotels and resorts, as he also urged locals to convert their homes into what tourism called homestay for the visitors.

He said he started to pour assistance in spurring tourism in his district by bringing big event, such as the Timex International Triathlon at Anda town last year, where white sand beaches abound. The event’s however failed to absorb visitors and enthusiasts because Anda lacks the accommodation, he said.

The congressman called on the balikbayan-Boholanos to bring home a friend or two that would mean creating jobs in the tourism sector. If Bohol receives 300,000 visitors a year, then it would mean 300,000 job opportunities for the locals, and if every visitor spends a thousand dollars in their stay here it would mean more income to the workers, he said.

Montecillo, for her part, said the provincial government can assist in facilitating investments because it has in place an investment assistance package, such as through the Bohol Investment Promotion Center.

According to the mission report of the German GTZ Consultancy to identify possible interventions to support tourism development in the Visayas, the Super Region Central Philippines must improve the development of tourism, ... and that government agencies and the private sector shall work together to develop and promote tourism including infrastructure development and marketing.

The study also found Central Visayas is becoming an expensive tourist destination. “At present, hotels and resorts in Cebu, Boracay and Panglao are fully booked during peak months. And the lack of hotel rooms leads to remarkably higher prices, making Central Philippines/Visayas an expensive destination.”

“The shortage in hotel rooms has led to increased room rates. In cases where there are investors, a large contiguous piece of suitable site is not available. Properties at the beach front are usually owned by many owners, hence, the difficulty to consolidate. At the same time, the Philippines is not considered to be a lucrative place of investment,” the report said further.

Earlier, Josephine Cabarrus, head of the Bohol Tourism Office, said “there is so much business” and booming of investments in infrastructure poured by private companies. She said that tourism here would not be gauged only by arrivals but also in number of investments.

The DOT’s yardstick on tourist traffic/arrivals does not include the “day-trippers” or those who don’t spend a night here, as well as those who check in at non-accredited hotels and resorts.

Based on DOT’s available data on Central Philippines, Cebu has the most number of accommodation facilities with 665, Palawan has 345, Boracay has 334, Bohol has 297, Camarines Sur has 188, Albay has 120, and Sorsogon has 53.

On room accommodations, Cebu has 18,009, Boracay has 6,984, Palawan has 4,140, Bohol has 3,901, Camarines Sur has 3,282, Albay has 2,069, and Sorsogon has 693.

On tourism employment, Cebu has 13,182 workers, Boracay has 5,673, Palawan has 3,397, Bohol has 3,134, Camarines Sur has 1,704, Albay has 1,189, and Sorsogon has 350.   (FREEMAN)