http://ph.yfittopostblog.com/2010/06/21/dear-future-dot-secretary/

Dear Future DOT Secretary
By Yahoo! Southeast Asia Editors – June 21st, 2010

By Anna Oposa, Blog Watch

Dear Future DOT Secretary,

Hi. You will be introduced to us in a couple of weeks. I’m anxious to find out who you are because, well, you have my ultimate dream job. While others dream of winter wonderlands, I am consumed with chronic wanderlust for our lupang sinilangan, having traveled everywhere from Batanes to Bukidnon. After chasing kangaroos in Australia, watching Broadway shows in the concrete jungle where dreams are made of (i.e. New York), going on a South African safari, and hiking up Mount Fuji, I can say in full faith that we live in the most beautiful country in the world. I wish you, as the Secretary of the Department of Tourism, believe the same thing.

For a long time, Bangkok’s #1 source of income was tourism. It’s marketed well as an exotic backpacker’s destination. Singapore had to create artificial tourist attractions such as Sentosa and most recently, Universal Studios, to draw visitors in. The Philippines, with its 7, 107 beautiful islands, doesn’t have to. I don’t know what your definition of tourism is, but I do hope that these proposals find you:

1) The airport is the first and last thing that tourists see. Only in the Philippines have I experienced having our cars checked, tickets inspected, and bags x-rayed before entering the airport. I strongly suggest incorporating travel taxes and the (rather exorbitant) terminal fees with ticket fares as well. These would cut check-in time (and hassle) in half. Please close down NAIA1 because it looks like Shake Rattle and Roll XII-XX could be filmed there. You may want to consider transferring all international flights to the clean and gleaming NAIA3 too.

2) The DOT needs to work with Manila Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to fix our public transportation system. We may have several public transportation systems (e.g. the bus, taxi, tricycle, MRT, LRT, and jeepneys) but all of them are inefficient. This is one of the major reasons why traveling here is so difficult. Instead of spending billions on the Skyway, why not a train like New York’s subway or Hong Kong’s MTR? We also need bike lanes so that biking in the city won’t be equivalent to a suicide attempt. It’s possible—just take a look at Marikina! To protect our pedestrians, we need lots of covered walkways. And MMDA, what possessed you to change the sign “BAWAL TUMAWID DITO, NAKAKAMATAY” to “BAWAL TUMAWID MAY NAMATAY NA DITO.” My good friend Dino wrote to you guys, saying it should have been “MATATALINO ANG MGA GUMAGAMIT NG OVERPASS” to promote positive reinforcement. “Gaganda pakiramdam ng mga tumatawid gamit ng overpass, tapos iisipin ng mga hindi gumagamit ng overpass, tanga sila,” says Dino.

3) Prioritize culture and the arts. To borrow words from Sir Butch Dalisay, my professor and idol, “Culture defines us as a national community with shared values and visions, albeit with diverse ideas and expressions; the arts embody those ideas and enable those expressions.” Before we were known for boxing, we were known and will always be known for our excellence and innate talent in the arts, whether in literature, film, music, dance, theatre, or visual arts. We don’t necessarily have to perform the tinikling orpandanggo sa ilaw a million times, though those are always a treat to watch. Take a look at the song “Biyahe Tayo” which showcases our fantastic singers and musicians, and “Take Me to the Philippines” by Apl.de.Ap featuring different street dance clubs. Work with the National Commission for Culture and the Artsand the Cultural Center of the Philippines to create and promote shows by and for Filipinos. I have this fantasy of Manila becoming the Great White Way of Asia. We have the talent for it, that’s for sure. We can’t keep losing our performers to ship cruises, lounges, Disneyland Hong Kong, and Universal Studios Singapore. And I beg you, please coordinate with the National Historical Institute to preserve (what’s left of) our heritage.

4) Partner with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to make the Philippines lead in ecotourism. Mt. Makiling has more species of plants than the entire USA. Our marine waters are home to more than half of the species of corals, six out of the seven species of marine turtles, and the biggest andsmallest fish in the world.

In a recent study by the United Nations, the Philippines was indentified as the “center of the center of marine biodiversity on Earth.” However, there’s a lot of work to be done. From the 500, 000 hectares of mangroves that we had, we now have a dismal 28, 000 hectares. From 3 million hectares of coral reefs from the “center of the center of marine biodiversity on Earth,” it’s down to about 100, 000 hectares. For a body of water to be swimmable, it must only have 200 units of fecal coliform bacterium. Our Manila Bay, lauded for its sunset, has one million. If Manny Villar was swimming in a dagat ng basura, then those who take a dip in Manila Bay are swimming in a dagat ng…

Yeah. There.

Sorsogon’s latest tourist attraction is their Firefly Watching Cruise. Fireflies are a biological indicator of clean air. I say they are also biological indicators of hope that our environment is improving and can continue to. All it takes is a bit of imagination, ingenuity, and a whole lot of political will. The rest of the Philippines can learn from the city of Puerto Princesa, touted as the ecotourism capital of the country. Under the leadership of Mayor Ed Hagedorn, Puerto Princesa pioneered projects such as “Love Affair with Nature”among others.

5) Have a clear vision of how you want our country to be advertised. Should we market it as a premiere destination for leisure, business, wellness, ecotourism, or even medical tourism? Would it be possible to follow the footsteps of Indonesia and work with the premise of “unity in diversity”? There are so many undervalued geological and geographical marvels of this country, such as Calaguas and Camiguin. We need to take care of Mindanao too, because when people think Mindanao, they think MILF and bombs. Mindanao’s beautiful and relatively safe, but it’s the dangerous parts that always get the limelight. I hope, Dear Secretary, that you have something like Sen. Dick Gordon’s Wow Philippines campaign or Sec. Ace Durano’s Awesome Philippines campaign to encourage and inspire both local and foreign tourists to explore the Philippines. Provide easily accessible materials, like our very own, locally made version of the Lonely Planet book, for proper guidance. And please make sure it’s grammatically correct. See this photo from the DOT website.

WRONG GRAMMAR: “Discover the fine white sands of this world-reknown beach.”

There is so much untapped potential that this archipelago has to offer. Like Sec. Durano says in this brilliant TVC, “Maglakbay at mamangha sa sarili mong bansa.”


Love,

Anna

Anna Oposa is an English Studies major at the University of the Philippines-Diliman. She was on the campaign team of Gilbert C. Remulla, who ran for senator under the Nacionalista Party. She blogs at freckles in the sky. Blog Watch is a bloggers’ initiative aiming to cover underplayed stories that traditional media cannot always cover due to limited resources and time.

http://ph.yfittopostblog.com/2010/06/21/dear-future-dot-secretary/

Dear Future DOT Secretary
By Yahoo! Southeast Asia Editors – June 21st, 2010

By Anna Oposa, Blog Watch

Dear Future DOT Secretary,

Hi. You will be introduced to us in a couple of weeks. I’m anxious to find out who you are because, well, you have my ultimate dream job. While others dream of winter wonderlands, I am consumed with chronic wanderlust for our lupang sinilangan, having traveled everywhere from Batanes to Bukidnon. After chasing kangaroos in Australia, watching Broadway shows in the concrete jungle where dreams are made of (i.e. New York), going on a South African safari, and hiking up Mount Fuji, I can say in full faith that we live in the most beautiful country in the world. I wish you, as the Secretary of the Department of Tourism, believe the same thing.

For a long time, Bangkok’s #1 source of income was tourism. It’s marketed well as an exotic backpacker’s destination. Singapore had to create artificial tourist attractions such as Sentosa and most recently, Universal Studios, to draw visitors in. The Philippines, with its 7, 107 beautiful islands, doesn’t have to. I don’t know what your definition of tourism is, but I do hope that these proposals find you:

1) The airport is the first and last thing that tourists see. Only in the Philippines have I experienced having our cars checked, tickets inspected, and bags x-rayed before entering the airport. I strongly suggest incorporating travel taxes and the (rather exorbitant) terminal fees with ticket fares as well. These would cut check-in time (and hassle) in half. Please close down NAIA1 because it looks like Shake Rattle and Roll XII-XX could be filmed there. You may want to consider transferring all international flights to the clean and gleaming NAIA3 too.

2) The DOT needs to work with Manila Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to fix our public transportation system. We may have several public transportation systems (e.g. the bus, taxi, tricycle, MRT, LRT, and jeepneys) but all of them are inefficient. This is one of the major reasons why traveling here is so difficult. Instead of spending billions on the Skyway, why not a train like New York’s subway or Hong Kong’s MTR? We also need bike lanes so that biking in the city won’t be equivalent to a suicide attempt. It’s possible—just take a look at Marikina! To protect our pedestrians, we need lots of covered walkways. And MMDA, what possessed you to change the sign “BAWAL TUMAWID DITO, NAKAKAMATAY” to “BAWAL TUMAWID MAY NAMATAY NA DITO.” My good friend Dino wrote to you guys, saying it should have been “MATATALINO ANG MGA GUMAGAMIT NG OVERPASS” to promote positive reinforcement. “Gaganda pakiramdam ng mga tumatawid gamit ng overpass, tapos iisipin ng mga hindi gumagamit ng overpass, tanga sila,” says Dino.

3) Prioritize culture and the arts. To borrow words from Sir Butch Dalisay, my professor and idol, “Culture defines us as a national community with shared values and visions, albeit with diverse ideas and expressions; the arts embody those ideas and enable those expressions.” Before we were known for boxing, we were known and will always be known for our excellence and innate talent in the arts, whether in literature, film, music, dance, theatre, or visual arts. We don’t necessarily have to perform the tinikling orpandanggo sa ilaw a million times, though those are always a treat to watch. Take a look at the song “Biyahe Tayo” which showcases our fantastic singers and musicians, and “Take Me to the Philippines” by Apl.de.Ap featuring different street dance clubs. Work with the National Commission for Culture and the Artsand the Cultural Center of the Philippines to create and promote shows by and for Filipinos. I have this fantasy of Manila becoming the Great White Way of Asia. We have the talent for it, that’s for sure. We can’t keep losing our performers to ship cruises, lounges, Disneyland Hong Kong, and Universal Studios Singapore. And I beg you, please coordinate with the National Historical Institute to preserve (what’s left of) our heritage.

4) Partner with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to make the Philippines lead in ecotourism. Mt. Makiling has more species of plants than the entire USA. Our marine waters are home to more than half of the species of corals, six out of the seven species of marine turtles, and the biggest andsmallest fish in the world.

In a recent study by the United Nations, the Philippines was indentified as the “center of the center of marine biodiversity on Earth.” However, there’s a lot of work to be done. From the 500, 000 hectares of mangroves that we had, we now have a dismal 28, 000 hectares. From 3 million hectares of coral reefs from the “center of the center of marine biodiversity on Earth,” it’s down to about 100, 000 hectares. For a body of water to be swimmable, it must only have 200 units of fecal coliform bacterium. Our Manila Bay, lauded for its sunset, has one million. If Manny Villar was swimming in a dagat ng basura, then those who take a dip in Manila Bay are swimming in a dagat ng…

Yeah. There.

Sorsogon’s latest tourist attraction is their Firefly Watching Cruise. Fireflies are a biological indicator of clean air. I say they are also biological indicators of hope that our environment is improving and can continue to. All it takes is a bit of imagination, ingenuity, and a whole lot of political will. The rest of the Philippines can learn from the city of Puerto Princesa, touted as the ecotourism capital of the country. Under the leadership of Mayor Ed Hagedorn, Puerto Princesa pioneered projects such as “Love Affair with Nature”among others.

5) Have a clear vision of how you want our country to be advertised. Should we market it as a premiere destination for leisure, business, wellness, ecotourism, or even medical tourism? Would it be possible to follow the footsteps of Indonesia and work with the premise of “unity in diversity”? There are so many undervalued geological and geographical marvels of this country, such as Calaguas and Camiguin. We need to take care of Mindanao too, because when people think Mindanao, they think MILF and bombs. Mindanao’s beautiful and relatively safe, but it’s the dangerous parts that always get the limelight. I hope, Dear Secretary, that you have something like Sen. Dick Gordon’s Wow Philippines campaign or Sec. Ace Durano’s Awesome Philippines campaign to encourage and inspire both local and foreign tourists to explore the Philippines. Provide easily accessible materials, like our very own, locally made version of the Lonely Planet book, for proper guidance. And please make sure it’s grammatically correct. See this photo from the DOT website.

WRONG GRAMMAR: “Discover the fine white sands of this world-reknown beach.”

There is so much untapped potential that this archipelago has to offer. Like Sec. Durano says in this brilliant TVC, “Maglakbay at mamangha sa sarili mong bansa.”


Love,

Anna

Anna Oposa is an English Studies major at the University of the Philippines-Diliman. She was on the campaign team of Gilbert C. Remulla, who ran for senator under the Nacionalista Party. She blogs at freckles in the sky. Blog Watch is a bloggers’ initiative aiming to cover underplayed stories that traditional media cannot always cover due to limited resources and time.

:cheers::cheers::cheers:

Saw pics of Ha Long Bay. Mukhang madumi. Krabi lang pwede i compare sa El Nido, Coron, and Caramoan. Patay nga lang corals sa Caramoan. :bash:

Napuntahan ko na ang Halong Bay at nakapagcruise na ako dun overnight... in fairness maganda ang Halong Bay in terms of scenery at yung peaceful waters nya....

pero ang pangit lang eh yung caves nila na exploited na dahil na rin sa mga lighting na nilagay nila dun...

Napuntahan ko na ang Halong Bay at nakapagcruise na ako dun overnight... in fairness maganda ang Halong Bay in terms of scenery at yung peaceful waters nya....

pero ang pangit lang eh yung caves nila na exploited na dahil na rin sa mga lighting na nilagay nila dun...

Have you been to El Nido, Coron, Caramoan? What do you think, honest comparison.

BIMP-EAGA BACKS PHILIPPINES' UNDERGROUND RIVER, KOMODO NATIONAL PARK AS WORLD'S NEW 7 WONDERS
KOTA KINABALU, Malaysia June 22 (NNN-Bernama) -- The Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-the Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) tourism cluster, strongly backs the bid of the Philippines' Puerto Princesa Underground River and Indonesia's Komodo National Park, to be among the world's new Seven Wonders of Nature.

A statement issued by the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA), here Tuesday said the Puerto Princesa Underground River and Komodo National Park are two of the 28 finalists vying for a spot in the search for the world's new seven wonders of nature.

The campaign is run by the New7Wonders Foundation in partnership with the United Nations which aims to discover the seven natural wonders that best represent earth's beauty and variety.

At the end of the 7th BIMP-EAGA Joint Tourism Development Cluster Meeting held in Puerto Princesa recently, tourism leaders of the subregion issued a statement of support to Komodo National Park and the Underground River.

The support is also a gesture of strong partnership within the BIMP-EAGA region in strengthening cooperation for the development of tourism.

"We are in agreement that direct and indirect benefits shall be achieved by the member countries with the Puerto Princesa Underground River and the Komodo National Park, as inclusions to the new seven wonders of nature, come 2011," the statement said.

"We have come up with a joint statement to push what we consider as a gift of nature, which you can't find anywhere else, except in Palawan and Indonesia," Ik Pahon Ak Joyik, Permanent Secretary of Sarawak Ministry of Social and Urban Development and Chairman of the EAGA Joint Tourism Development Cluster, said during a press conference.

The St. Paul Subterranean River, also known as the Puerto Princesa Underground River, is located about 50 km north of the city of Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

It features a limestone karst mountain landscape with an 8.2 km navigable underground river. It includes major formations of stalactites and stalagmites, and several large chambers. The underground river is reputed to be the world's longest.

One of the country's pristine attractions, the Underground River is listed under the World Heritage sites of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

It is one of the four world heritage sites in BIMP-EAGA primed as a key ecotourism destination.

Meanwhile, Indonesia's Komodo National Park is located in the center of the Indonesian archipelago, between the islands of Sumbawa and Flores.

The national park was founded in 1980 to protect the Komodo dragon. Later, it was also dedicated to protecting other species, including marine animals. The islands of the national park are of volcanic origin.

In 1986, the Park was declared a World Heritage Site and a Man and Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO, both indications of the Park's biological importance.

The EAGA tourism industry has been adopting Community-Based Eco Tourism (CBET) development as a strategy to intensify partnerships among the local governments and communities, as a means for addressing rural poverty.

The 7th EAGA JTD meeting earlier this month gathered 127 participants from all across the sub-region's tourism industry, including representatives from the BIMP EAGA Business Council, BIMP-EAGA Tourism Council, BIMP-EAGA Facilitation Center, Asian Development Bank, German Technical Cooperation, local government units and the private sector.

The meeting discussed key major issues and updates on subregional efforts to establish the EAGA as a key tourism destination in Southeast Asia.http://namnewsnetwork.org/v2/read.php?id=124529

^^ Buti naman at may collective effort. :)

di ba front runner yata yung sa vietnam yung halong bay ba yun? Di raw counted yung vote galing sa candidate country???

di ba front runner yata yung sa vietnam yung halong bay ba yun? Di raw counted yung vote galing sa candidate country???

yeah pero swangit naman na destination yun. ala naman sa kalingkingan maski Coron.

GMA appointee next DoT chief? (http://www.journal.com.ph/index.php/national/12292-gma-appointee-next-dot-chief-.html)
by People's Journal
Tuesday, 22 June 2010 19:23
A FORMER Arroyo appointee who was later sacked under alleged questionable circumstances looms as the next Tourism secretary.

Rumors that Makati Business Club executive director Alberto “Bertie” Lim will succeed Tourism Secretary Ace Durano circulated when he joined a group of prospective members of the incoming Cabinet in the house of President-elect Noynoy Aquino on Times St. Quezon City the other day.

MBC, whose members supported Aquino but publicly said it is not asking for rewards or favors, reportedly pushed for the appointment of Lim to the Department of Tourism.

Lim is a member of the Aquino search committee and reliable sources said another member of this committee, former Tourism secretary Narzalina Lim, and an ally in the foreign lobby group, nominated the MBC official to the DoT.

Tourism stakeholders expressed alarm about the possibility of Lim getting the tourism portfolio as he has scant experience in tourism as an official of Ten Knots Development Corp.

Robert Lim Joseph, chairman emeritus of the National Association of Independent Travel Agencies and president of the Save Our Skies movement, urged Aquino to study extensively the background of officials he will appoint to sensitive and strategic positions.

“This is frightening because of the damage they will cause the country,” Joseph said, noting that there are more capable and more politically correct people who can be appointed to the new government.

He recalled that Lim was appointed by President Macapagal-Arroyo to the Civil Aeronautics Board but was relieved after a short tenure under suspicious circumstances.

Before that, Lim represented the Freedom to Fly Coalition before various government agencies like the National Economic and Development Authority. He and Narzalina Lim are FFC founding members.

Joseph said the FFC was unmasked as a foreign lobbyist in a Senate hearing, where its president Mila Abad admitted working with the Accelerated Growth, Investment and Liberalization with Equity and receiving foreign funding to lobby for unreciprocal open skies policy. During that hearing, reelected Senators. Serge Osmena III and Tito Sotto questioned the right of Lim or the FFC to speak for Filipino interest.

Joseph, who is fighting for fair or reciprocal open skies, said what he and his group have been fighting for since 2001 will go to naught because one of the stalwarts of unreciprocal open skies will take the helm of a regulatory agency that can set this policy.

Comment:

Melita Renee Eclavea Bertie Lim is a good businessman, but as the head of tourism? I don't think so. I worked with Palawan Tourism Council before when I was still in travel writing, and based on his performance as president (at that time), I don't think he's the type to think out of the box when it comes to destination development

http://ph.yfittopostblog.com/2010/06/21/dear-future-dot-secretary/

Dear Future DOT Secretary
By Yahoo! Southeast Asia Editors – June 21st, 2010

By Anna Oposa, Blog Watch

Dear Future DOT Secretary,

Hi. You will be introduced to us in a couple of weeks. I’m anxious to find out who you are because, well, you have my ultimate dream job. While others dream of winter wonderlands, I am consumed with chronic wanderlust for our lupang sinilangan, having traveled everywhere from Batanes to Bukidnon. After chasing kangaroos in Australia, watching Broadway shows in the concrete jungle where dreams are made of (i.e. New York), going on a South African safari, and hiking up Mount Fuji, I can say in full faith that we live in the most beautiful country in the world. I wish you, as the Secretary of the Department of Tourism, believe the same thing.

For a long time, Bangkok’s #1 source of income was tourism. It’s marketed well as an exotic backpacker’s destination. Singapore had to create artificial tourist attractions such as Sentosa and most recently, Universal Studios, to draw visitors in. The Philippines, with its 7, 107 beautiful islands, doesn’t have to. I don’t know what your definition of tourism is, but I do hope that these proposals find you:

1) The airport is the first and last thing that tourists see. Only in the Philippines have I experienced having our cars checked, tickets inspected, and bags x-rayed before entering the airport. I strongly suggest incorporating travel taxes and the (rather exorbitant) terminal fees with ticket fares as well. These would cut check-in time (and hassle) in half. Please close down NAIA1 because it looks like Shake Rattle and Roll XII-XX could be filmed there. You may want to consider transferring all international flights to the clean and gleaming NAIA3 too.

2) The DOT needs to work with Manila Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to fix our public transportation system. We may have several public transportation systems (e.g. the bus, taxi, tricycle, MRT, LRT, and jeepneys) but all of them are inefficient. This is one of the major reasons why traveling here is so difficult. Instead of spending billions on the Skyway, why not a train like New York’s subway or Hong Kong’s MTR? We also need bike lanes so that biking in the city won’t be equivalent to a suicide attempt. It’s possible—just take a look at Marikina! To protect our pedestrians, we need lots of covered walkways. And MMDA, what possessed you to change the sign “BAWAL TUMAWID DITO, NAKAKAMATAY” to “BAWAL TUMAWID MAY NAMATAY NA DITO.” My good friend Dino wrote to you guys, saying it should have been “MATATALINO ANG MGA GUMAGAMIT NG OVERPASS” to promote positive reinforcement. “Gaganda pakiramdam ng mga tumatawid gamit ng overpass, tapos iisipin ng mga hindi gumagamit ng overpass, tanga sila,” says Dino.

3) Prioritize culture and the arts. To borrow words from Sir Butch Dalisay, my professor and idol, “Culture defines us as a national community with shared values and visions, albeit with diverse ideas and expressions; the arts embody those ideas and enable those expressions.” Before we were known for boxing, we were known and will always be known for our excellence and innate talent in the arts, whether in literature, film, music, dance, theatre, or visual arts. We don’t necessarily have to perform the tinikling orpandanggo sa ilaw a million times, though those are always a treat to watch. Take a look at the song “Biyahe Tayo” which showcases our fantastic singers and musicians, and “Take Me to the Philippines” by Apl.de.Ap featuring different street dance clubs. Work with the National Commission for Culture and the Artsand the Cultural Center of the Philippines to create and promote shows by and for Filipinos. I have this fantasy of Manila becoming the Great White Way of Asia. We have the talent for it, that’s for sure. We can’t keep losing our performers to ship cruises, lounges, Disneyland Hong Kong, and Universal Studios Singapore. And I beg you, please coordinate with the National Historical Institute to preserve (what’s left of) our heritage.

4) Partner with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to make the Philippines lead in ecotourism. Mt. Makiling has more species of plants than the entire USA. Our marine waters are home to more than half of the species of corals, six out of the seven species of marine turtles, and the biggest andsmallest fish in the world.

In a recent study by the United Nations, the Philippines was indentified as the “center of the center of marine biodiversity on Earth.” However, there’s a lot of work to be done. From the 500, 000 hectares of mangroves that we had, we now have a dismal 28, 000 hectares. From 3 million hectares of coral reefs from the “center of the center of marine biodiversity on Earth,” it’s down to about 100, 000 hectares. For a body of water to be swimmable, it must only have 200 units of fecal coliform bacterium. Our Manila Bay, lauded for its sunset, has one million. If Manny Villar was swimming in a dagat ng basura, then those who take a dip in Manila Bay are swimming in a dagat ng…

Yeah. There.

Sorsogon’s latest tourist attraction is their Firefly Watching Cruise. Fireflies are a biological indicator of clean air. I say they are also biological indicators of hope that our environment is improving and can continue to. All it takes is a bit of imagination, ingenuity, and a whole lot of political will. The rest of the Philippines can learn from the city of Puerto Princesa, touted as the ecotourism capital of the country. Under the leadership of Mayor Ed Hagedorn, Puerto Princesa pioneered projects such as “Love Affair with Nature”among others.

5) Have a clear vision of how you want our country to be advertised. Should we market it as a premiere destination for leisure, business, wellness, ecotourism, or even medical tourism? Would it be possible to follow the footsteps of Indonesia and work with the premise of “unity in diversity”? There are so many undervalued geological and geographical marvels of this country, such as Calaguas and Camiguin. We need to take care of Mindanao too, because when people think Mindanao, they think MILF and bombs. Mindanao’s beautiful and relatively safe, but it’s the dangerous parts that always get the limelight. I hope, Dear Secretary, that you have something like Sen. Dick Gordon’s Wow Philippines campaign or Sec. Ace Durano’s Awesome Philippines campaign to encourage and inspire both local and foreign tourists to explore the Philippines. Provide easily accessible materials, like our very own, locally made version of the Lonely Planet book, for proper guidance. And please make sure it’s grammatically correct. See this photo from the DOT website.

WRONG GRAMMAR: “Discover the fine white sands of this world-reknown beach.”

There is so much untapped potential that this archipelago has to offer. Like Sec. Durano says in this brilliant TVC, “Maglakbay at mamangha sa sarili mong bansa.”


Love,

Anna

Anna Oposa is an English Studies major at the University of the Philippines-Diliman. She was on the campaign team of Gilbert C. Remulla, who ran for senator under the Nacionalista Party. She blogs at freckles in the sky. Blog Watch is a bloggers’ initiative aiming to cover underplayed stories that traditional media cannot always cover due to limited resources and time.

love the WRONG GRAMMAR part...

^^ love the WRONG GRAMMAR part...

Its not just grammer but also spelling. And its also not an excuse for how most foreign media can't spell Philippines correctly.

Have you been to El Nido, Coron, Caramoan? What do you think, honest comparison.

I have not been to el nido, coron or caramoan... so I cannot compare from them... I'm just telling that the scenery in Ha Long Bay is beautiful... but the beaches there where we docked on not that good...

anyways.. I hope we could pull the Underground rivers rank back up into top 7 as it is currently in 13th place if I'm not mistaken...

I have not been to el nido, coron or caramoan... so I cannot compare from them... I'm just telling that the scenery in Ha Long Bay is beautiful... but the beaches there where we docked on not that good...

Dude, visit them. Start muna with Caramoan --> then Coron ---> then El Nido. ;)


Seryoso, my friend who've been to Ha Long and then to Coron, said, wala sa kalingkingan ang Ha Long sa Coron.

I have not been to el nido, coron or caramoan... so I cannot compare from them... I'm just telling that the scenery in Ha Long Bay is beautiful... but the beaches there where we docked on not that good...

anyways.. I hope we could pull the Underground rivers rank back up into top 7 as it is currently in 13th place if I'm not mistaken...

Parang nakalimutan yata..

Dude, visit them. Start muna with Caramoan --> then Coron ---> then El Nido. ;)


Seryoso, my friend who've been to Ha Long and then to Coron, said, wala sa kalingkingan ang Ha Long sa Coron.


well.. I think.. you should see Ha Long Bay din to experience it also... I can imagine na mas maganda ang Coron or El Nido sa Ha Long but I'd say na may sariling charm ang Ha Long like El Nido and Coron has their own... and I'd say na I loved Ha Long nung nandun ako specially cruising around the islands on a Chinese junk. :D

nasa list pa ng mga places to go ko ang El Nido, Coron at Caramoan... hopefully makavisit kami ng Caramoan next year or next next year... depending sa budget hehehe...

Oo nga nakalimutan na ng mga tao ang New7 wonders... pati ng media.. nwei until end of the year pa naman yata nila ifafinal..

well.. I think.. you should see Ha Long Bay din to experience it also... I can imagine na mas maganda ang Coron or El Nido sa Ha Long but I'd say na may sariling charm ang Ha Long like El Nido and Coron has their own... and I'd say na I loved Ha Long nung nandun ako specially cruising around the islands on a Chinese junk. :D

nasa list pa ng mga places to go ko ang El Nido, Coron at Caramoan... hopefully makavisit kami ng Caramoan next year or next next year... depending sa budget hehehe...

Oo nga nakalimutan na ng mga tao ang New7 wonders... pati ng media.. nwei until end of the year pa naman yata nila ifafinal..

Next month na siguro, pag may oras. But not keen on being on a junk, notorious kasi sila sa double booking.

I remember one Thai blogger say that El NIdo is like Ha Long Bay + Krabi combined...Hehe.

Maybe in terms of scale, Ha Long wins because it has about 2000 karst cliff islands compared to El Nido's less than 50. But our waters are far more beautiful and clear, and enticing, and add to that the number of beaches, including the "secret" ones, and the brackishwater lagoons.

Tourism investments total P62-B from 2000-09
MANILA, June 23 (PNA) -- Tourism investments in the Philippines from 2000-2009 amounted to P62 billion, a recent study conducted by The Asian Foundation (TAF) and the Center for Research and Communications (CRC) revealed, boosting employment in the tourism sector down to the community level.

Presented during a Retrospective Seminar on Tourism Accomplishments held recently at the Almacenes Hall of Fort Santiago, the research examined the economic impacts of tourism, mainly on job creation, economic growth, and local area development.

Cherry Lyn Rodolfo of the CRC gave a talk on the specific indicators of tourism development, sharing that the number of jobs generated by the industry has totaled to three million for the past nine years.

Rodolfo said, citing data from the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB), that this reflects a 9.5 percent share of national employment. As of May 2010, a total of 2,343 tourism-related establishments in Central Philippines, Metro Manila, and Tagaytay produced 46,048 jobs.

In terms of local area development, there is at least a demand of P14 million for food supplies in tourism destinations. Of this, the study showed, 60 percent is sourced from local markets and neighbors, citing the experiences in Palawan resorts like Amarela, El Nido, Dos Palmas, and Microtel in Boracay.

Investments and new markets

Investments from private stakeholders also contributed to the increased jobs in tourism-related businesses.

Tourism Secretary Joseph 'Ace' Durano lauded the private investors, saying, “Their aggressive presence internationally and domestically, through their promotions and various packages, continued to entice tourists. The growth in the supply side was spurred by expansions, new businesses that they invested in, which, in turn, created local employment.”

When asked on the Department’s key strategies for the past years, he said, “A large part of new marketing efforts were DOT-initiated, such as tapping the incentive market in China.”

According to the DOT Planning and Promotions, aside from the traditional markets in the travel trade, particularly US and Japan, alternative, niche market segments have been developed in the past years, which include China, South Korea, Russia, India, and the Middle East.

“The study presented the realistic picture of industry’s gains for the country and our communities. We commend the efforts of TAF and CRC in coming up with a comprehensive report on the key developments in tourism, diversifying our marketing strategies that later on translated to growth in the local level,” noted Undersecretary for Planning and Promotions Eduardo Jarque Jr.

Community tourism

Aside from international marketing, the DOT has also been actively supporting community-based, LGU-initiated projects by providing training and technical assistance to local government units. Included in this program are the Sohoton Cave Tour in Basey, Samar; the Danao Adventure Park in Bohol; and the Iwahig River Project in Palawan.

“Community-led initiatives greatly helped in the development of tourism in the grassroots level. The DOT was the supporting role in the case of Palawan’s Iwahig River Project. Established and funded by Bantay Kalikasan, the DOT gave technical support, training, and promotions,” Durano said.

“If you look at it, it is a combination of DOT initiatives and various partnerships. It’s the sum of all of these efforts that resulted to the gains that CRC reported about,” Durano continued.

Marlon Dioquino from the Iwahig Community Ecotourism Association in Palawan, shared, “From being unemployed, I am now earning up to P20,000 a month by being a boat man for the Iwahig River Cruise,” he said in Filipino.

The river tour is a Community-based Sustainable Tourism program that promotes preservation of the environment, benefits local businesses, and employs locals. The tour allows passengers to traverse the well-preserved Iwahig River, regarded as the cleanest in the country. At night, thousands of fireflies come to the area -– a sight which easily captivated and continues to entice both local and foreign tourists.

Dioquino, having started a family early in life, is thankful to be back to school because he now has a source of income. “I consider myself a ‘Scholar of the Fireflies.’ Thanks to them, I am earning for my family and have enough funds to finish my course.”

"Tourism propels not only our country’s macro-economic activity, but also encourages growth in small communities, areas that originally were not part of the tourism circuit,” Rolando Cañizal, Director for Tourism Planning and Development, said.

Commenting on the CRC study, he added, “Focusing on the effects of tourism at the micro-scale allows for a better appreciation of the long-term benefits in grassroots level. Effective tourism development means finding the hidden qualities in a small town for economic and livelihood growth.” http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=6&sid=&nid=6&rid=283341

Tourists increase in first 5 months - DOT
(philstar.com) Updated June 24, 2010 12:06 PM

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) – Tourist volume in the Philippines' 13 major destinations from January to May totaled 3.65 million, up by 5.37 percent over last year's figure, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said today.

Of the total number, foreign tourists to key destinations increased by 12.81 percent, while the number of domestic tourists posted only 2.12 percent, the DOT said in a statement.

Metro Manila is the leading destination with a share of 23.2 percent, or 848,518 tourists staying in accommodation facilities.

The East Asia market, composed of the Chinese mainland, Japan and South Korea as well as the regions of Hong Kong and Taiwan, is the major source market, accounting for 41. 78 percent of its total visitors.

Tourists to Cebu, the country's second largest city, grew by 4. 34 percent, or 734,531 visitors in the first five months of 2010, providing impetus for greater public and private sector investments in infrastructure and tourism related facilities.

Visitors in Cebu accounted for a 20 percent share of the total tourist volume in major destinations during the period under review. South Korea and Japan are the leading source markets for Cebu with the share of 30 percent and 21 percent, respectively.

Tourists visiting Boracay Island from January to May increased by 12.15 percent with foreign visitors staying in hotels and resorts climbing 26 percent.

The country will boost construction of tourist facilities to cope with growing tourists. By the end of 2010, 80 new accommodation facilities are expected to have opened, increasing the available rooms in select destinations by 3,743.

By 2011 and 2012, additional 3,539 and 1,142 rooms will be available as 57 new accommodation facilities will commence operations. These new investments are anticipated to generate additional 17,782 jobs in the accommodation sector, the DOT said.

First Five Months Industry Report
Statistics Article - 06/23/2010
www.tourism.gov.ph

Table 1: Tourist Volume in Major Destinations, January-May 2010/2009
http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h102/cebupics3/Cebu%20news/Tourism1Q2010.jpg

Table 2: Total Accommodation Establishments, Available Rooms
and Employment in Selected Destinations May 2010
http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h102/cebupics3/Cebu%20news/Room1Q2010.jpg

Table 3: New Accommodation Facilities and Rooms, 2010 - 2012
http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h102/cebupics3/Cebu%20news/NewRoom2010-2012.jpg

^^ Thanks for posting. :)

mga gusto kong mapuntahang lugar sa pilipinas:

- bicol region
- cebu
- iloilo
- palawan
- boracay

:banana::banana::banana:

Its not just grammer but also spelling. And its also not an excuse for how most foreign media can't spell Philippines correctly.It's not just grammar but also spelling. And it's also not an excuse for how most foreign media can't spell Philippines correctly. ;) ;) ;)

^^Toinks :hilarious

Boracay circumferential road nearly finished

ILOILO CITY -- The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is nealry finished with the P80-million Boracay Circumferential Road project.

Public Works Secretary Victor A. Domingo and Western Visayas regional director Rolando M. Asis inspected the road project early this month.

The road traverses Brgy. Yapak to Puka Shells Beach north of Boracay; Brgy. Balabag in the central line; Brgy. Cagban in the south; and Brgy. Tambisaan to the east.

Aside from paving and concreting the road, the DPWH also improved the drainage canals along the road

The first stage of the project, with an estimated cost of P50 million, started on Dec. 27, 2009 and will be completed this month.

The second stage of the project, which costs P30 million, was contracted by Square Cube Construction. It started in March this year and will be completed in November.

The DPWH has also upgraded with concrete the 2,004-meter road connecting Brgy. Lapus-Lapus to Fairways and Blue Water resort. This project improves accessibility in the area and allows mobility for tourists and local residents.

Other road projects in the island are the P30-million concrete upgrades of the Balabag-Manoc-Manoc Main Road, the Boracay Circumferential Road-Tambisaan Section (P8 million), the Balabag-Yapak Section (P15 million) and the Yapak-Puka Shell Road Section (P7 million). -- Francis Allan L. Angelo

It's not just grammar but also spelling. And it's also not an excuse for how most foreign media can't spell Philippines correctly. ;) ;) ;)

Alot of people don't put ' in their words.

First Five Months Industry Report
Statistics Article - 06/23/2010
www.tourism.gov.ph

Table 1: Tourist Volume in Major Destinations, January-May 2010/2009
http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h102/cebupics3/Cebu%20news/Tourism1Q2010.jpg

Table 2: Total Accommodation Establishments, Available Rooms
and Employment in Selected Destinations May 2010
http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h102/cebupics3/Cebu%20news/Room1Q2010.jpg

Table 3: New Accommodation Facilities and Rooms, 2010 - 2012
http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h102/cebupics3/Cebu%20news/NewRoom2010-2012.jpg

Cebu has more people employed in this industry....tells a lot how the National Capital Region lags in tourism or in attracting tourists to the capital.

That table is not complete. I wonder why DOT's statistics for 2009 is not yet out, or at least posted in government websites such as NSCB and NSO.

The table above is only for the first half of the year. Plus, the numbers for foreign and domestic tourism are merged. It used to be separate. :ohno:

The only thing I know about tourism last year is that foreign arrivals hit 3M, same as in 2008.

http://thepinoy.net/?p=4516

I wonder what are the miracles that will happen to our economy once we achieve the 16M tourists mark...:banana:

Almost everything in Philippines is underutilized or not properly utilized. Whew! We have all the potentials, IMHO.

kung gusto nyo malaman kung gano karami ang turista nagpupunta sa pinas. Magpunta lang kayo pag weekend sa Robinsons Place manila mall. Dun makikita mo minsan bus loads pa.

Its not just grammer but also spelling. And its also not an excuse for how most foreign media can't spell Philippines correctly.


ang pagkakaalam ko pag sinabing wrong grammar kasama na dun yung maling spelling at maling paggamit ng punctuation.

kung gusto nyo malaman kung gano karami ang turista nagpupunta sa pinas. Magpunta lang kayo pag weekend sa Robinsons Place manila mall. Dun makikita mo minsan bus loads pa.

hay naku, ang dami rin kaya dito sa cebu. hindi na dapat pumunta pa ng robinsons place manila para lang malaman ko kung gaano karami pumupunta sa pilipinas kasi sa cebu pa lang, marami na.

ang pagkakaalam ko pag sinabing wrong grammar kasama na dun yung maling spelling at maling paggamit ng punctuation.



In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of sentences, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics, and pragmatics.

Linguists do not normally use the term to refer to orthographical rules, although usage books and style guides that call themselves grammars may also refer to spelling and punctuation. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammar)

Anyway OT na.

bakit ba big deal lagi sa Pinoy ang English grammar?
while in fact, Pinoy's don't know the correct Filipino grammar... just as much as English speakers to their own language.

In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of sentences, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics, and pragmatics.

Linguists do not normally use the term to refer to orthographical rules, although usage books and style guides that call themselves grammars may also refer to spelling and punctuation. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammar)

^^^^
from wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammar)

Guys, pwedi nyo rin i-post ang mga tourist spot d2 sa pinas.

http://www.xdownx.org/index.php?/forum/34-tourist-spot/

Thanks

^^^^
from wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammar)

Yep. Nakalink na po yan.

kung gusto nyo malaman kung gano karami ang turista nagpupunta sa pinas. Magpunta lang kayo pag weekend sa Robinsons Place manila mall. Dun makikita mo minsan bus loads pa.

Ano ba ang tourist attraction sa Rob Manila?

3million kasama na ang domestic... Dito sa Malaysia, more than 10million na sa 1st five months, foreign tourists pa lang yan, domestic di pa kasali... napanood ko sa news nila dito... they are targeting 24million this year compared to last years 23.6million... tourism industry was the second-highest income-earner for the country. Last year, it generated RM52bil (P600B) and it’s expected to hit RM53bil (P6.8B)this year.

Thailand's tourism arrivals dropped from 14.5million in 2008 to 14.1million in 2009...

Isa ding issue ng tourism is the uniqueness of the place. Would you think people from other nations would visit our country if we offer the same thing as them as well? Dapat nga may unique ambiance 'tong Pilipinas that is open for everyone. We also have to invest on making new structures that not only serves our people but also bring awe to visitors as well. Napagtanto ko, why would I visit Thailand if we have the same beaches? Only one thing: shopping. Dapat may unique aspects din ang turismo natin.

Wala kai tayong concrete palsa sa tourism. sa Malaysia maganda pan tourism promotion nila nasa National Geographic channel pa tayo, kinurakot yon budget.

Isa ding issue ng tourism is the uniqueness of the place. Would you think people from other nations would visit our country if we offer the same thing as them as well? Dapat nga may unique ambiance 'tong Pilipinas that is open for everyone. We also have to invest on making new structures that not only serves our people but also bring awe to visitors as well. Napagtanto ko, why would I visit Thailand if we have the same beaches? Only one thing: shopping. Dapat may unique aspects din ang turismo natin.


madaming babaeng hubo sa thailand. at legal yun. sana ganun din sa atin. :lol:

madaming babaeng hubo sa thailand. at legal yun. sana ganun din sa atin. :lol:

Mas maganda beaches natin kesa sa kanila. Shopping, okay naman ang shopping sa atin ah.

^ masarap sa thailand yung thai curries nila. Merong green curry, merong red curry.

although mga foreigner nasasarapan din naman sa adobo,kaldereta,afritada natin.

isama mo pa krispy pata, at sisig.

Mas maganda beaches natin kesa sa kanila. Shopping, okay naman ang shopping sa atin ah.

wala nga yatang surfing beach ang thailand ano?
kumpara mo sa siargao natin.

mas varied ang mga beaches natin e. depende sa gusto mo gawin, merong pang scuba diving, merong pang snorkeling, merong white sands, pang triathlon, merong pang surfing.

Mas maganda beaches natin kesa sa kanila. Shopping, okay naman ang shopping sa atin ah.

Well, prices daw mas mura dun kumpara sa atin. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Dapat ngang aggressive yung gobyerno natin sa ganito.

Well, prices daw mas mura dun kumpara sa atin. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Dapat ngang aggressive yung gobyerno natin sa ganito.

Aggressive naman sila sa corruption. saan pa tayo.

^^ Bwisit na korapsyon yan. Ipaparada ba naman ang mga tarps ng mga mukha ng politiko (Through the initiative of, with the help of...) Putik...

Mag-fund raising tayo, kunin yung mga tarps na yan, at gawing itsahan ng tae o kung anupaman sa mga karnabal.

Sa Malaysia wala kang makikitang Matandang puti na may kasamang local... Ang mga turista dito ay pure na mga turista talaga...

^^^ Mga tao na ang may depresiya diyan. Hindi ko maintindihan minsan kung bakit nasisikmura ng mga pinay ang karamihan duon. Ewan ko lang kung dahil hindi sanay lagi nakakakita ng puti ang mga pinoy kase yuong ibang matatandang puti, mukhang gusgusin. Tipong nag ipon lang ng kaunting pera tapos pumunta sa pinas kase kaya nilang magmukhang hari sa kakatiting na baon nila na pera. Grabe ang nakikita kong pinay na proud na proud pa na puti ang kasama nila sa pinas, kahit dito sa america. Malimit tulay sila pa ang nagtatrabaho para sa asawa nilang matandang puti. Talaga lang kumapit sa patalim para maka-abot ng America o Europe.

bakit ba big deal lagi sa Pinoy ang English grammar?
while in fact, Pinoy's don't know the correct Filipino grammar... just as much as English speakers to their own language.

here we go again, bakit ba? bakit big deal rin sayo kung lahat ng pilipino hindi alam yung correct filipino grammar? anung gagawin mo sa cebuano kung hindi magaling sa tagalog? papagalitan mu dahil mali2x yung tagalog nya? wtf! kahit anu pang sabihin mu, tagalog/filipino will only be for the tagalogs. okay pine!

^^^ Mga tao na ang may depresiya diyan. Hindi ko maintindihan minsan kung bakit nasisikmura ng mga pinay ang karamihan duon. Ewan ko lang kung dahil hindi sanay lagi nakakakita ng puti ang mga pinoy kase yuong ibang matatandang puti, mukhang gusgusin. Tipong nag ipon lang ng kaunting pera tapos pumunta sa pinas kase kaya nilang magmukhang hari sa kakatiting na baon nila na pera. Grabe ang nakikita kong pinay na proud na proud pa na puti ang kasama nila sa pinas, kahit dito sa america. Malimit tulay sila pa ang nagtatrabaho para sa asawa nilang matandang puti. Talaga lang kumapit sa patalim para maka-abot ng America o Europe.

bata yung kasama ko noh:D:lol:

16years old:D toinks

here we go again, bakit ba? bakit big deal rin sayo kung lahat ng pilipino hindi alam yung correct filipino grammar? anung gagawin mo sa cebuano kung hindi magaling sa tagalog? papagalitan mu dahil mali2x yung tagalog nya? wtf! kahit anu pang sabihin mu, tagalog/filipino will only be for the tagalogs. okay pine!

Hoy ha! masmagaling pa nga magtagalog minsan ang mga bisaya sa tunay na tagalog lalo na duon sa hindi masyadong marunong magtagalog kase mas proper ang grammar ng mga ito samantala ang mga tagalog, binababoy ang tagalog dahil sa mga slang. Minsan nga lang napagtatawanan ang ilang bisaya dahil sa lalim ng tagalog words na gamit nila. Siguro para din kung ang hindi bisaya magbisaya tapos gumagamit ng words na hindi usually ginagamit ng comon bisaya. Siguro nakakailang lang talaga makarinig ng unsual word gaya nuong isang Cebuano dito, sabi "Maysarili akong aklatan sa aking tahanan" nagtawanan yuong ibang pinoy dahil sa sobrang lalim daw ng tagalog.

bata yung kasama ko noh:D:lol:

16years old:D toinks

Pedo ka talaga! Anong mapapala mo duon? Blanko lang ang kayang iputok nuon...:rofl:

okay sir. i am with you pero minsan naiirita lang talaga ako paglumalabas na yang mga klaseng pananaw na yan. OT na

Yeah, I understand. Don't sweat it buddy. I'm not making a point I just remembered that incident the guy used real deep tagalog words to most tagalog's and other pinoy's amazement. We all scratched our heads. I actually told the guy " akala ko hindi ka magaling magtagalog? para kang poet na tagalog" We just all laughed together.

RP fully recovered; Pinoys are back to traveling mode
Economy
Written by Max V. de Leon / Reporter
Thursday, 24 June 2010 20:59

Filipinos are back on the traveling mode, with Amadeus Asia-Pacific reporting an 11-percent increase in travel bookings in the country in the first half of the year compared to those for the same period in 2009.

Bookings on the first half of this year also improved by 2 percent compared to those in the first half of 2008, which means that the Philippine travel industry has fully recovered from the global financial crisis, according to David Brett, president of Amadeus Asia-Pacific.

“The markets in the region have bounced back but the Philippines is the fastest. The people here are traveling again,” Brett said.

The most notable increase in bookings, he said, is in the labor-traffic segment, or those going to other countries to work. This segment represents about 56 percent to 58 percent of Philippine outbound travels.

Growth, Brett said, is also noticeable in the leisure and business segment.

To cope with the increasing bookings, travel agents in the country are now also modernizing their operations, with the number of agencies using the Amadeus technology platform increasing to about 2,200 from 2,000 last year.

There are about 5,000 travel agencies in the country.

Amadeus is also upgrading its service offerings by launching two new IT solutions by September.

Maria Paz Alberto, president of the Philippine Travel Agencies Association, confirmed that ticketing has, indeed, increased by double digits this year.

However, the industry is coming from a low base since it suffered a 26-percent decline in ticketing in 2009.

Also, Alberto said travel agents are losing 10 percent to 15 percent of its ticketing to online bookings being done by the airlines, themselves.

^ masarap sa thailand yung thai curries nila. Merong green curry, merong red curry.

although mga foreigner nasasarapan din naman sa adobo,kaldereta,afritada natin.

isama mo pa krispy pata, at sisig.

Actually I noticed that tourists love Bikol food.

Well, prices daw mas mura dun kumpara sa atin. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Dapat ngang aggressive yung gobyerno natin sa ganito.

Mas mura nga daw dun but the quality isnt that great, plus seriously, I dont want our tourist sites overrun by a million people.


Sa Malaysia wala kang makikitang Matandang puti na may kasamang local... Ang mga turista dito ay pure na mga turista talaga...

Hindi lang halata pero meron yan. Sa KL naglipana ang mga pokpok na galing Thailand, India, Cambodia, Vietnam, Russia, Indonesia and Pinas.

Dito sa bansa ko, patagong obvious.

okay sir. i am with you pero minsan naiirita lang talaga ako paglumalabas na yang mga klaseng pananaw na yan. OT na

bakit ka nman naiirita sa sinabi ko..

ang sabi ko lang nman eh..
bakit pag wrong english grammar.. kung laitin na..
eh ang mga tagalog nga.. hinde alam ang correct tagalog grammar including myself..

it's called double standard.. Filipinos don't care about correct Filipino grammar, but the opposite is with the English grammar.

my point is.. it is shallow to make a big deal out of wrong grammar

3million kasama na ang domestic... Dito sa Malaysia, more than 10million na sa 1st five months, foreign tourists pa lang yan, domestic di pa kasali... napanood ko sa news nila dito... they are targeting 24million this year compared to last years 23.6million... tourism industry was the second-highest income-earner for the country. Last year, it generated RM52bil (P600B) and it’s expected to hit RM53bil (P6.8B)this year.

Thailand's tourism arrivals dropped from 14.5million in 2008 to 14.1million in 2009...

If these stats include those thais and other east asians taking short trips in the Thai-Malaysian border, as well as Singaporeans passing over the Johor-Bahru border, then that unduly inflates the total number of international visitors..

Anyhow, what's really important is the value these tourists bring in -the length of stay and the money the spent. Longer stay means more revenues..

Actually I noticed that tourists love Bikol food.



Mas mura nga daw dun but the quality isnt that great, plus seriously, I dont want our tourist sites overrun by a million people.




Hindi lang halata pero meron yan. Sa KL naglipana ang mga pokpok na galing Thailand, India, Cambodia, Vietnam, Russia, Indonesia and Pinas.

Dito sa bansa ko, patagong obvious.

guys kahit saan yan meron.....wag kayong magtaka....kahit sa mga 1st world countries.....sa singapore ano sa akala nyo...wla....punta lang kayo sa orchard road medyo late na....naku naglipana.....pinay pinoy indian, kung ano anong bansa...kati lang yan lahat kinakati...:lol:

guys kahit saan yan meron.....wag kayong magtaka....kahit sa mga 1st world countries.....sa singapore ano sa akala nyo...wla....punta lang kayo sa orchard road medyo late na....naku naglipana.....pinay pinoy indian, kung ano anong bansa...kati lang yan lahat kinakati...:lol:

SG is getting notorious for trafficking of women. Sa Clarke Quay dami din dyan, Geylang, at Chinatown and Bugis. Yung casa usually is in hotels kapareho sa KL.

Eto, kuha ko snapshot sa Chinatown if I can remember it correctly:

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v265/120/75/530586281/n530586281_1363860_1178.jpg

If these stats include those thais and other east asians taking short trips in the Thai-Malaysian border, as well as Singaporeans passing over the Johor-Bahru border, then that unduly inflates the total number of international visitors..

Anyhow, what's really important is the value these tourists bring in -the length of stay and the money the spent. Longer stay means more revenues..

Those 23.6 million tourists last 2009 stayed at least 6.5 days average... Actually that article talked about tourists staying in Malaysia for days and accounted that those 23million tourists only stayed 6.5 days average... This year they are targeting an 8 day average for tourists to stay and tour around Malaysia, the more days they stay, the more income it will generate for the country...

Mas klaro kase ang statistics nila dito sa foreign and domestic, and those who really are tourists, not just passinf Malaysia from Singapore to Thailand...
unlike sa atin na di narin alam kung foreign lang ba ang 3million o kasama na ang domestic...:ohno:

Actually I noticed that tourists love Bikol food.



Mas mura nga daw dun but the quality isnt that great, plus seriously, I dont want our tourist sites overrun by a million people.




Hindi lang halata pero meron yan. Sa KL naglipana ang mga pokpok na galing Thailand, India, Cambodia, Vietnam, Russia, Indonesia and Pinas.

Dito sa bansa ko, patagong obvious.

Oo nga meron siguro dito sa Malaysia... mga 10k siguro sa 23million... or less than 1%.
Compara natin sa Pilipinas, IMO siguro more than 50%...

mostly kase nakikita ko dito ay yung mga mag asawa o nag hohoneymoon, isang buong pamilya kasama mga maliliit na bata and most specially backpackers, hindi backfukerz ha... and also yung matatandang couples na wala na sigurong magawa sa pera kaya travel nalang ng travel...

1 thing na naniniwala ako na about 98% are pure tourists visiting Malaysia is bec Malaysia is conservative... Those white old horney men won't go to Malaysia if they only want packing. Why Malaysia?, meron namang Thailand na lantaran... Bat pahihirapan pa nila sarili nila sa Malaysia kung gusto nila ng hiyot, eh mas madali naman makakita sa Thailand or Pilipinas...

Baka may mag react nanaman at sabihin na di ako maka Pilipino... I mean let's just accept na kulelat tayo... Sinasabi pa natin dahil maraming hubo sa Thailand kaya maraming turista, sguro mga kalahati... so kalahati sa 14 million ay 7 million na pure tourist talaga... eh malayo pa din yung 3million natin tas ang kalahati pa ay matatanda na may kasamang mga Pinay, eh 7million to 1.5million nalang...:nuts:

Oo nga meron siguro dito sa Malaysia... mga 10k siguro sa 23million... or less than 1%.
Compara natin sa Pilipinas, IMO siguro more than 50%...

mostly kase nakikita ko dito ay yung mga mag asawa o nag hohoneymoon, isang buong pamilya kasama mga maliliit na bata and most specially backpackers, hindi backfukerz ha... and also yung matatandang couples na wala na sigurong magawa sa pera kaya travel nalang ng travel...

1 thing na naniniwala ako na about 98% are pure tourists visiting Malaysia is bec Malaysia is conservative... Those white old horney men won't go to Malaysia if they only want packing. Why Malaysia?, meron namang Thailand na lantaran... Bat pahihirapan pa nila sarili nila sa Malaysia kung gusto nila ng hiyot, eh mas madali naman makakita sa Thailand or Pilipinas...

Baka may mag react nanaman at sabihin na di ako maka Pilipino... I mean let's just accept na kulelat tayo... Sinasabi pa natin dahil maraming hubo sa Thailand kaya maraming turista, sguro mga kalahati... so kalahati sa 14 million ay 7 million na pure tourist talaga... eh malayo pa din yung 3million natin tas ang kalahati pa ay matatanda na may kasamang mga Pinay, eh 7million to 1.5million nalang...:nuts:

Just setting your statistics straight. I am not trying to antagonize you or anyone, but let us look at it from a different perspective. Malaysia as conservative? Uhm, I do not think so.


Malaysia (http://www.uri.edu/artsci/wms/hughes/malaysia.htm)

Trafficking

Malaysia is receiving country for trafficked women from Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, China, India, Taiwan, Singapore, Burma, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Laos. (CATW - Asia Pacific, Trafficking in Women and Prostitution in the Asia Pacific)

Malaysian women can be found in prostitution in Hong Kong and Australia. (CATW - Asia Pacific, Trafficking in Women and Prostitution in the Asia Pacific)

Case

In a brothel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 37 Thai and Chinese women were found hidden in a small secret room during a police raid on a restaurant which fronted as a brothel. Up to 12 men bought them each night for M$18 (Bt215), which went to the brothel owner and pimps. The women were in very poor mental and physical health. Some of the women were suffering from asthma and some from wounds caused by severe beatings. The women were never allowed outside. Malaysian police in cooperation with Thai officials carried out the rescue. The raid team, comprised of more than 50 officers, used hammers and acetylene torches to cut through three iron gates. ("Thai sex slaves set free," The Nation, 25 July 1997)

Prostitution

There are 43,000 to 142,000 or more prostituted persons in Malaysia. Prostituted persons are mainly adult women, but there are also male, transvestite and child prostitutes, both girls and boys. (International Labor Organization. Dario Agnote, "Sex trade key part of S.E. Asian economies, study says," Kyodo News, 18 August 1998)

Studies show that more than half of those ''rescued'' from various sex establishments were under age 18. (Dario Agnote, "Sex trade key part of S.E. Asian economies, study says," Kyodo News, 18 August 1998)

Eight women from Russia between the ages of 18 and 33 have been arrested in Kota-Kinibalu, on the island of Borneo, Malaysia. Local police said the women had been detained on charges of prostitution. They were taken to custody after a raid conducted at a hotel. Three men from Malaysia suspected of hiring the women have also been arrested. Other Russian women incriminated in prostitution have been expelled from the country. ("Eight prostitutes from Russia arrested in Malaysia," ITAR/TASS, 16 August 1998)

There are 142,000 women in prostitution in Malaysia; 8,000-10,000 in Kuala Lumpur. (CATW - Asia Pacific, Trafficking in Women and Prostitution in the Asia Pacific)

There is no way of obtaining correct information on prostitution since the government doesn't compile them, said Malaysian Social Development Minister Zaleha Ismail. (Philip Waller, "UN: Prostitution Booming in Asia," Associated Press Online, 20 August 1998)

Recreation business, such as entertainment and fitness clubs, are the main channels for prostitution. Almost every town has a red-light district. (CATW - Asia Pacific, Trafficking in Women and Prostitution in the Asia Pacific)

Prostitution Tourism

Malaysia is a particular destination for various nations' sex tours. (CATW - Asia Pacific, Trafficking in Women and Prostitution in the Asia Pacific)


Girls from China tricked into forced prostitution in M’sia: MCA
Published on: Friday, January 24, 2003


Kuala Lumpur: An increasing number of naive young girls from China are being tricked into forced prostitution in Malaysia, according to a local organisation which is regularly called to their rescue.

They are lured to Malaysia by the promise of well-paid jobs in factories and restaurants, says Michael Chong, head of the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) public service and complaints department.

Syndicates in China place advertisements in newspapers offering salaries of up to 1,000 dollars a month, he told AFP.

“These girls, who earn about a hundred dollars a month in their home town, as nurses or other steady jobs, of course get excited at the prospect and end up coming here. They are all naive.”

When they arrive in Malaysia they are passed on to local agents who take away their passports and tell them they have to work as prostitutes to repay their travel expenses of up to 8,000 dollars, Chong said.

Six women from China told the Malay Mail recently of how their nightmare developed from that moment on.

They were locked in a budget hotel room and forced to service customers.

“When I refused to do it at first, I was slapped. The man told me if I didn’t work, I would be starved to death and never return to China,” said 25-year-old Wern.

The women said that when they tried to use excuses, saying they were ill or menstruating, they were beaten up or burnt with cigarette butts.

The six girls hatched a desperate plan to flee. They unscrewed the grilles of their bedroom window, tied bedsheets to form a rope and escaped, one girl spraining her ankle in the process.

Chong says this sort of scenario is quite common.

“They are locked up 24 hours a day, it’s very hard for them to escape. When they do, they end up having to jump out of windows. I know four girls who had to climb out of a 27th storey window once.

“Then they get into a taxi and beg the driver to take them to their embassy. Luckily, the taxi drivers all know about me, and they say ‘I will send you to Michael Chong instead’”.

MCA for which Chong works is a political party and member of the ruling National Front coalition, and tries to arrange for the girls to be sent home. Some 27 per cent of Malaysia’s population of 23 million are ethnic Chinese.

“Last year we received 173 cases of Chinese nationals being cheated in Malaysia,” Chong said. “Most of them said they were forced into prostitution.

“We have had 14 cases this month so far. The situation is going from bad to worse.”

Concern over the rising trend of foreigners involved in vice has led the government of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to set up a committee to study ways of combating the problem.

The Home Ministry revealed last week that more than 5,100 foreigners involved in prostitution were deported last year.

The deportations included 2,155 Indonesians, 1,230 Chinese, 946 Thais, 298 Vietnamese, 189 Filipinos, 138 Uzbeks and 125 Cambodians.

Chong, who has achieved something of a cult status as a saviour of Chinese victims of criminals from loan sharks and con artists to pimps, said “I can’t sleep with all these cases, it is the biggest pain in my heart. It’s as if my own daughter was suffering.

“Some of them come in with broken legs and broken arms. They had been tortured by their agents or sadist clients,” he said.

An irony, however, was that many clients “fall in love with the Chinese girls and then help them come to me for assistance. The ugly side is that some of them have also blackmailed the girls and said that they will help them in exchange for sex and more sex.”

When asked why China seemed to be a hotspot for the trade, he said it was due to demand.

“In the past, it was girls from Thailand. Now they are very scared of HIV, so they turned to Indonesian girls. But Filipinos can’t speak Chinese, and it’s quite difficult for them to come here.

“Singaporean girls are very rich, so the best place is China. They are beautiful, tall and fair, so the clients here like them,” he said.-AFP

http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news.cfm?NewsID=16522

^^aysus nag hanap pa talaga ng article about prostitution... Ofcourse, hindi ako kindergarten para paniwalaing walang prostitution dito... Tao din ang mga tao dito, naghahanap ng laman... Kahit nga sa Rome meron... Mga kasama ko ngang Malaysians sa trabaho nanonood din ng eks...
Before i came here I thought Malaysia is conservative but hindi naman pala pero still as a nation compared to Thailand or Phils, very conservative pa din ang bansang to...

iniiba mo na usapan e...

Find me an article that tourists flock Malaysia just to puk...

Having sex tourism in Malaysia erases the fact that we still lag behind in terms of tourist arrivals? Yan ang mahirap sa atin, hinahanapan natin ng mali ang iba para KUNWARI hindi tayo kulelat tingnan...

We cannot deny that their government is DOING SOMETHING for their tourism industry... pero ang Pilipinas, very lousy... don't tell me walang pera, ang vietnam at cambodia nga may promotional advertisment sila sa cnn...

Why do a lot of foreigners think the Philippines is dangerous?
http://liveinthephilippines.com/content/2010/06/why-do-a-lot-of-foreigners-think-the-philippines-is-dangerous/

An interesting article written by an expat in the Philippines.Check out the comments too.:)

Having sex tourism in Malaysia erases the fact that we still lag behind in terms of tourist arrivals? Yan ang mahirap sa atin, hinahanapan natin ng mali ang iba para KUNWARI hindi tayo kulelat tingnan...

We cannot deny that their government is DOING SOMETHING for their tourism industry... pero ang Pilipinas, very lousy... don't tell me walang pera, ang vietnam at cambodia nga may promotional advertisment sila sa cnn...

Maraming factors kung bakit mababa ang tourist arrivals natin:

These are some of the factors that I can think of at the mo:

1. We are literally off the SE Asian travel trail. Hindi convenient. At mahal. Think of this. If you are flying into BKK, you can just take the overland route and hit Cambodia, Laos, Burma and Vietnam.

Maraming budget airlines that cater within this loop. Ang Pilipinas and to a certain extent Indonesia (except Bali) nahiwalay.

2. Kulang sa infrastructure ang turismo natin. Kumpara sa ibang bansa na sinasabi mo, baguhan lang ang Pilipinas sa turismo. Walang standardised na hotel and resort prices. Roads need to be built more, safety in aviation, frequency of flights, and safety in overland or maritime travel. Dyan kulang tayo.


3. Yung sinasabi mong ads on CNN at BBC, mahal yan and hindi masyadong targeted ang audience. Wag mong basta lang sisihin ang government natin, kasi maliit talaga ang budget na binibigay sa tourism promotion. Akala mo ba may binibigay na pondo ang government sa mga embahada natin para sa tourism? Think again.

Kaya yung mga embahada natin think of other things to promote like joining expos, sometimes sponsoring junket trips for foreign writers, etc etc. Sa totoo lang sa liit or ni sa walang budget na binibigay, maraming nagagawa ang mga embahada natin.

Regarding sa sex tourism, ang sa akin lang, put it in a proper perspective, hindi ko naman denedeny eh, pero ilagay lang sa lugar minsan ang mga outrageous claims natin ha.

Why do a lot of foreigners think the Philippines is dangerous?
http://liveinthephilippines.com/content/2010/06/why-do-a-lot-of-foreigners-think-the-philippines-is-dangerous/

An interesting article written by an expat in the Philippines.Check out the comments too.:)


Hay naku, bayaan mo na ang kanegahan na yan.

Think positive.

I guess the statistics don't lie, more tourists are killed in Thailand than in the Philippines, but why do we have such a negative image? Most probably because of the news, images of the Philippines picture gun totting abu sayyaf rebels and squatter kids, wrong image to send out to the world.

I guess the statistics don't lie, more tourists are killed in Thailand than in the Philippines, but why do we have such a negative image? Most probably because of the news, images of the Philippines picture gun totting abu sayyaf rebels and squatter kids, wrong image to send out to the world.

and walang kapararakang blogs na puro nega na lang sinusulat. Hayz.

and walang kapararakang blogs na puro nega na lang sinusulat. Hayz.

Actually, I think the blog was promoting the Philippines. :lol: I think the blog is written by expats who want to promote retiring here.

Actually, I think the blog was promoting the Philippines. :lol: I think the blog is written by expats who want to promote retiring here.

I've seen that blog, no offense, but parang ilang lang ako. Medyo mga seniors yan with Pinay wives. Ahem, I don't want to judge but you know my point.

I've seen that blog, no offense, but parang ilang lang ako. Medyo mga seniors yan with Pinay wives. Ahem, I don't want to judge but you know my point.

Yeah I know what you mean, "Live like a king in the Philippines" type of expats.

Yeah I know what you mean, "Live like a king in the Philippines" type of expats.

May tama ka. :lol::lol::lol:

Anyway,

http://mtapodavaotours.com/admin/gallery/Lake%20Sebu2.jpg


South Cotabato’s famed zip line draws record tourist visits
Posted on June 20th, 2010 under Beauty of the Philippines

Tourist arrivals in this resurging lakeside resort town has continued to register record figures since last year, thanks to its emerging eco-tourism attractions.
Engr. Rodolfo Tuya, project manager of the Seven Falls Project Management Unit (SFPMU) here, said Thursday the area’s recorded visits by various domestic and foreign tourists is now nearing the 100,000 mark as the town’s highly-touted zip lines continue to draw a significant number of visitors on a daily basis.

He said the twin zip line, which connects three of the town’s famed seven waterfalls, has been attracting an average 8,304 visits per month since its opening in October last year.

Tuya said that in 2008, the area only recorded 14,087 visits but it leapt to 51,212 last year due to the noted increased tourist arrivals during the last quarter of the year.
From January to May this year, he said SFPMU already recorded 41,522 visits.
“Since the operation of the project, we posted a monthly average of 70.65 percent increase in tourist arrivals,” Tuya said.

He noted the significant increase in visits or tourist arrivals is mainly due to the completion of the two zip lines connecting waterfall 1 and 5 as well as waterfall 2 and 5, which features a thrilling drop of about 740 and 400 meters, respectively.

Tuya said the increased visits were also noted in the area’s canopy walk and picnic areas near the waterfalls.

“Our visitors really enjoy the thrill of airborne flight between the waterfalls in just less than two minutes,” he said.

Aside from trying out the zip lines, he said extreme sports enthusiasts also enjoyed trekking, camping, bird-watching, nature tripping around the seven waterfalls.

Lake Sebu town, which is famous for its three scenic natural lakes – Lahit (24 hectares), Seloton (48 hectares) and Sebu (354 hectares), is one of the top tourism destinations of Region 12 or Southwestern Mindanao and was earlier identified as one of the region’s priority areas for tourism development.

Aside from the three lakes, the town hosts at least seven waterfalls, several natural springs and preserved cultural communities of the town’s T’boli tribe.
Two years ago, the provincial government of South Cotabato launched a P100-million tourism development project funded by the local government that is mainly focused on the development of the road networks and the establishment of resort facilities for the town’s seven waterfalls.

Last year, the Asian Development Bank adopted Lake Sebu as one of its priority development areas for eco-tourism in the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines-East Asean Growth Area.


http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1321/1352764041_7e586f8376_o.jpg

http://goodnewspilipinas.com/?p=11820

I guess the statistics don't lie, more tourists are killed in Thailand than in the Philippines, but why do we have such a negative image? Most probably because of the news, images of the Philippines picture gun totting abu sayyaf rebels and squatter kids, wrong image to send out to the world.

Idagdag mo na yung mga kapwa nating Pilipino sa ibang bansa na sila mismong yumuyurak sa imahe ng Pilipinas.. minsan di lang sila naninira sa sariling bansa... sila pa mismo ang nagdidiscourage dahil na rin sa kamangmangan nila sa nangyayari locally..

^^ ay totoo yan. nakatapak lang sa ibang bansa feeling taga doon na. :lol:

Idagdag mo na yung mga kapwa nating Pilipino sa ibang bansa na sila mismong yumuyurak sa imahe ng Pilipinas.. minsan di lang sila naninira sa sariling bansa... sila pa mismo ang nagdidiscourage dahil na rin sa kamangmangan nila sa nangyayari locally..

That is why these people should be classified as "persona non grata" and should be banned in entering their homeland. In fact they are a disgrace to the Filipino society.

I met alot of these types (most of them domestic helpers) here and usually have verbal arguments with them. And they do talk shit about The Philippines especially to locals and foreigners there. I always intervene when topics like these come out.

That is why these people should be classified as "persona non grata" and should be banned in entering their homeland. In fact they are a disgrace to the Filipino society.

I met alot of these types (most of them domestic helpers) here and usually have verbal arguments with them. And they do talk shit about The Philippines especially to locals and foreigners there. I always intervene when topics like these come out.

Ahem, God, I know and met a lot of them... grabe sila magsalita, parang ABS-CBN, puro tae lumalabas sa bunganga. :ohno:

In short, its Filipinos themselves who are bringing negative images on their country. Especially those abroad.

In short, its Filipinos themselves who are bringing negative images on their country.

ay Wanch, hindi na yan balita. Kasama na ang media natin dyan sa numero unong promotor ng kanegahan.

ay Wanch, hindi na yan balita. Kasama na ang media natin dyan sa numero unong promotor ng kanegahan.

Media is to blame. But again, these negative images can be countered through the internet.

Sa Malaysia wala kang makikitang Matandang puti na may kasamang local... Ang mga turista dito ay pure na mga turista talaga...

Meron sa Bukit Bintang, punta ka pag gabi.

Media is to blame. But again, these negative images can be countered through the internet.

Oo naman, pero kelan lang ba naging mas widespread ang paggamit natin ng internet? Decades and decades of negative reporting from our own traditional media has left an indelible stain on our reputation.

I was thinking of maybe kung lahat tayo maglaunch ng travel blogs/good news blogs- all in different language about the Philippines. Imagine thousands of Pinoys blogging, tweeting - all about good news - we can definitely create a sustained positive wave about the country.

Meron sa Bukit Bintang, punta ka pag gabi.

Saan yan? Di ko pa narinig yan... So meron pero hahanapin pa, in short hindi lantaran... So sa ngayon, ang ibig kong sabihin, meron pero hindi lantaran or konti lang...

Saan yan? Di ko pa narinig yan... So meron pero hahanapin pa, in short hindi lantaran... So sa ngayon, ang ibig kong sabihin, meron pero hindi lantaran or konti lang...

http://teakdoor.com/Gallery/albums/userpics/10004/sex_in_penang_1_resize.JPG

http://teakdoor.com/Gallery/albums/userpics/10004/normal_sex_in_penang_2_resize.JPG


http://teakdoor.com/Gallery/albums/userpics/10004/normal_sex_in_penang_6.JPG


Penang yan. ;) Btw, Penang is one favoured sex tourist spots from expats from Thailand doing their visa runs. ;)

I guess the statistics don't lie, more tourists are killed in Thailand than in the Philippines, but why do we have such a negative image? Most probably because of the news, images of the Philippines picture gun totting abu sayyaf rebels and squatter kids, wrong image to send out to the world.

Agree... Nahihiya ako kung babanggitin na ng mga Malaysian co workers ko ang abu sayyaf... lahat ng nakausap ko knows about abu sayyaf... Ang defend ko naman, sinasabi ko na it is bec Mindanao in Southern Phils have Christians and Muslims, and are always on conflict but it's only in Southern Philippines, the central and northern are peaceful...

Isang negatibo at isang postibo ang binabanggit nila palagi about the Philippines...
negative = i'm afraid to go Pilipin coz I will be kill :bash:
positive = I want go Pilipin coz beaches beautiful, beautiful than malaysia :okay:


Idagdag mo na yung mga kapwa nating Pilipino sa ibang bansa na sila mismong yumuyurak sa imahe ng Pilipinas.. minsan di lang sila naninira sa sariling bansa... sila pa mismo ang nagdidiscourage dahil na rin sa kamangmangan nila sa nangyayari locally..

Ang mga Pilipino na na meet ko dito, puro naman positibo ang sinasabi about sa Pilipinas... pero it's bec thay are engineers mostly... marunong mag isip bago mag salita... wala pa naman akong na meet na DH dito.

Nung pumunta kami sa Langkawi, sinasabi namin sa kanila na Langkawi is beautiful but the Philippines is much better interms of beaches and tourist spots... agree naman silang lahat...

So meaning they know that our country is beautiful, kulang talaga sa invitation... Kulang talaga ginagawa ng government natin interms of promotion...:ohno:

That is why these people should be classified as "persona non grata" and should be banned in entering their homeland. In fact they are a disgrace to the Filipino society.


I met alot of these types (most of them domestic helpers) here and usually have verbal arguments with them. And they do talk shit about The Philippines especially to locals and foreigners there. I always intervene when topics like these come out.


naka tungtong lang sa ibang bansa, parang nakalimot na kung saan nanggaling... parang tinatapon na nila ang Pilipinas kung mag salita... eh sa Pilipinas din naman babalik...:bash:

In short, its Filipinos themselves who are bringing negative images on their country. Especially those abroad.

Yan din ang problema pero wala akong nakikitang pang alkontra sa mga negative publicities na yan about sa Pilipinas... Our government should defend those types of arguments by promoting our country in different countries... Kung gusto mong ma achieve, gagastusan mo talaga pero ang DOT sa atin, parang hindi ko na fifeel dito... Like Vietnam, Cambodia, they're beginning to promote their countries in a bigger picture penetrating international media... Yan talaga ang kulang sa atin e... Dito sa Malaysia, maraming billboards ang Thailand, Vietnam at Cambodia... Sa mga malls, may Vietnam... Isang buong bus ng Rapid Penang may pintang Bangkok...

Masaya ako nung naging DOT si Sec Durano pero ngayon, gusto ko na siyang pa palitan... Kahit sa Cebu nga na homeland nya, di lang man niya napaangat ng husto ang tourist arrivals doon samin... Ginawa pa niyang Flagship destination ang Cebu pero di naman dramatic ang pag angat ng tourism doon.

Media is to blame. But again, these negative images can be countered through the internet.

dito, wala nang problema ang mga locals sa pag promote ng bansa nila, Government na mismo ang gumagawa pero sa atin, kulang na kulang ang effort talaga... Ang dami ko nang t-shirt na may Pilipinas at Cebu at isinusoot ko sa mga gala dito para man lang maka attract ng kahit isang turista... Mga computers sa office namin, andami nang pics ng Pilipinas... Sana man lang tulungan ako ng Gobyerno natin, hahay... Bai Ace D., tabangi sad ko uy...:D

Agree... Nahihiya ako kung babanggitin na ng mga Malaysian co workers ko ang abu sayyaf... lahat ng nakausap ko knows about abu sayyaf... Ang defend ko naman, sinasabi ko na it is bec Mindanao in Southern Phils have Christians and Muslims, and are always on conflict but it's only in Southern Philippines, the central and northern are peaceful...

Isang negatibo at isang postibo ang binabanggit nila palagi about the Philippines...
negative = i'm afraid to go Pilipin coz I will be kill :bash:
positive = I want go Pilipin coz beaches beautiful, beautiful than malaysia :okay:




Ang mga Pilipino na na meet ko dito, puro naman positibo ang sinasabi about sa Pilipinas... pero it's bec thay are engineers mostly... marunong mag isip bago mag salita... wala pa naman akong na meet na DH dito.

Nung pumunta kami sa Langkawi, sinasabi namin sa kanila na Langkawi is beautiful but the Philippines is much better interms of beaches and tourist spots... agree naman silang lahat...

So meaning they know that our country is beautiful, kulang talaga sa invitation... Kulang talaga ginagawa ng government natin interms of promotion...:ohno:




naka tungtong lang sa ibang bansa, parang nakalimot na kung saan nanggaling... parang tinatapon na nila ang Pilipinas kung mag salita... eh sa Pilipinas din naman babalik...:bash:



Yan din ang problema pero wala akong nakikitang pang alkontra sa mga negative publicities na yan about sa Pilipinas... Our government should defend those types of arguments by promoting our country in different countries... Kung gusto mong ma achieve, gagastusan mo talaga pero ang DOT sa atin, parang hindi ko na fifeel dito... Like Vietnam, Cambodia, they're beginning to promote their countries in a bigger picture penetrating international media... Yan talaga ang kulang sa atin e... Dito sa Malaysia, maraming billboards ang Thailand, Vietnam at Cambodia... Sa mga malls, may Vietnam... Isang buong bus ng Rapid Penang may pintang Bangkok...

Masaya ako nung naging DOT si Sec Durano pero ngayon, gusto ko na siyang pa palitan... Kahit sa Cebu nga na homeland nya, di lang man niya napaangat ng husto ang tourist arrivals doon samin... Ginawa pa niyang Flagship destination ang Cebu pero di naman dramatic ang pag angat ng tourism doon.



dito, wala nang problema ang mga locals sa pag promote ng bansa nila, Government na mismo ang gumagawa pero sa atin, kulang na kulang ang effort talaga... Ang dami ko nang t-shirt na may Pilipinas at Cebu at isinusoot ko sa mga gala dito para man lang maka attract ng kahit isang turista... Mga computers sa office namin, andami nang pics ng Pilipinas... Sana man lang tulungan ako ng Gobyerno natin, hahay... Bai Ace D., tabangi sad ko uy...:D

Hindi naman lahat ng Southern Philippines or buong Mindanao ang magulo, isolated areas lang naman.

Kagaya ng Siargao:

z0htDp1UJUY

at Northern Mindanao:

BsVyLFQuLlc

Sabihin mo din, maraming Malaysian at Indones na terorista ang tumutulong sa Abu Sayaff.

http://teakdoor.com/Gallery/albums/userpics/10004/sex_in_penang_1_resize.JPG

http://teakdoor.com/Gallery/albums/userpics/10004/normal_sex_in_penang_2_resize.JPG


http://teakdoor.com/Gallery/albums/userpics/10004/normal_sex_in_penang_6.JPG


Penang yan. ;) Btw, Penang is one favoured sex tourist spots from expats from Thailand doing their visa runs. ;)


Oh really... di ko alam yan ah...
That's Chulia street pala, may picture din ako nang Love Lane street na yan... mostly nakikita ko mga foreign couples nag checheck in...


So Penang is one favoured sex tourist spots from expats from Thailand doing their visa runs?
So you mean 50 to 90 percent ng tourists in Penang ay naghahanap lang ng sex dito?

So that means mas ok pa din yung tourism sa Pilipinas dahil sa binabanggit mo na sex tourist spots dito?

Coz for me, as a feeling tourists here na pinupuntahan lahat ng tourist spots, hindi ko ma de deny na at least 90 percent ng nakikita ko ay mga backpackers at mga pami pamilya na taga Europe...

Gusto ko mang isaigaw sa kanila na mas maganda sa Pilipinas pero wala akong magagawa... Sana nga ang makikita ko mga Malay girls na ang kasa kasama ay yung mga white DOM para mabawas bawasan naman konte ang INGGIT ko... para may dahilan akong sabihin na mas marami pa ding turista sa Pilipinas dahil marumi ang tourism nila dito...
Pero sa nakikita ko, sa na observe ko, sa mga research ko about malaysias tourist industry, para akong nasasapi anng apat na letra, as of now I'm full of ENVY sa nakikita ko about thier tourism...

Minsan naisip ko nga na mag lagay ng TV sa isang mall at i-play ang WOW Philippines promotional video natin... Ganun na ako ka praning sa inggit...hahaha. nabubuang na si Juan...lol

Ahem, God, I know and met a lot of them... grabe sila magsalita, parang ABS-CBN, puro tae lumalabas sa bunganga. :ohno:

ay naku, may nakilala ako mag asawa dati, nagtatalo pa sila sa kotse kung ano daw ang sasakyan pag uwi ng pilipinas. Parang ayaw na nila mag jeep, LRT, at bus, mula nang makapag drive ng kotse. Which is necessity naman talaga dun sa lugar nila dahil anlalayo ng bahay. :lol:

Sa pinas napaka convenient ng public transport. 24/7 may masasakyan ka.

Hindi naman lahat ng Southern Philippines or buong Mindanao ang magulo, isolated areas lang naman.

Kagaya ng Siargao:

z0htDp1UJUY

at Northern Mindanao:

BsVyLFQuLlc

Sabihin mo din, maraming Malaysian at Indones na terorista ang tumutulong sa Abu Sayaff.

ayyyyyy! naku! wala kadin palang pinagkaiba sa mga Domestic Hepers na yan eh...

Boy, wag kang manira kung nais mong umangat... That's a crab mentality... it's bad:ohno:

Di naman nila kasalanan kung alam nila about abu sayaff...
Walang Siraan boy...
ipinipilit mo nga na marami talaga ang pumupunta lang dito sa sex kaysa sa holiday fun talaga... Try to live here in one year para malaman mo talaga kung paano umiikot ang tourism nila dito...

kahit nga kami pinag bawala n ng mga malaysian co workers namin na wag makipag sabay sa isang local na Malaysian in public, delikado daw... Ayaw ng mga Malay na lalaki na may kasamang taga ibang bansa ang mga babae nila... Kaya ang naririnig kong nagpapakentot ay mga Indonesian na kasama din namin sa trabaho...lol OT:D


YANG mga video na ipinopost mo, totoo yan! totoo talaga yan, maganda talaga yan... pero walang nakaka alam nyan eh, hindi sikat kung baga kahit napaka ganda...
Masarap yung tinitinda ko pero wala namang bumibili... Sagot: Dahil hindi mo ipinag sabi, ipinag sigawan na may masarap kang paninda kaya walang bumibili... Same with our tourism industry's situation... KULANG sa promotion... KULANG!

BTW, di mo pa ako sinasagot sa tanong ko?
Having sex tourism in Malaysia erases the fact that we still lag behind in terms of tourist arrivals?

Oh really... di ko alam yan ah...
That's Chulia street pala, may picture din ako nang Love Lane street na yan... mostly nakikita ko mga foreign couples nag checheck in...


So Penang is one favoured sex tourist spots from expats from Thailand doing their visa runs?
So you mean 50 to 90 percent ng tourists in Penang ay naghahanap lang ng sex dito?

So that means mas ok pa din yung tourism sa Pilipinas dahil sa binabanggit mo na sex tourist spots dito?

Coz for me, as a feeling tourists here na pinupuntahan lahat ng tourist spots, hindi ko ma de deny na at least 90 percent ng nakikita ko ay mga backpackers at mga pami pamilya na taga Europe...

Gusto ko mang isaigaw sa kanila na mas maganda sa Pilipinas pero wala akong magagawa... Sana nga ang makikita ko mga Malay girls na ang kasa kasama ay yung mga white DOM para mabawas bawasan naman konte ang INGGIT ko... para may dahilan akong sabihin na mas marami pa ding turista sa Pilipinas dahil marumi ang tourism nila dito...
Pero sa nakikita ko, sa na observe ko, sa mga research ko about malaysias tourist industry, para akong nasasapi anng apat na letra, as of now I'm full of ENVY sa nakikita ko about thier tourism...

Minsan naisip ko nga na mag lagay ng TV sa isang mall at i-play ang WOW Philippines promotional video natin... Ganun na ako ka praning sa inggit...hahaha. nabubuang na si Juan...lol



Meron din yan, pramis, wag maiingit. ;)

Just continue doing what you are doing, kundi mag blog ka about the Philippines tapos invite mo mga Malay na coworkers mo.

Mas maraming pera lang talaga sila para magbayad ng mga ads, AFAIK, last year bumaba ang tourism nila maski sa kakaadvertise, tapos tayo naman we were able to maintain and even register a minimal growth.

ayyyyyy! naku! wala kadin palang pinagkaiba sa mga Domestic Hepers na yan eh...

Boy, wag kang manira kung nais mong umangat... That's a crab mentality... it's bad:ohno:

Di naman nila kasalanan kung alam nila about abu sayaff...
Walang Siraan boy...
ipinipilit mo nga na marami talaga ang pumupunta lang dito sa sex kaysa sa holiday fun talaga... Try to live here in one year para malaman mo talaga kung paano umiikot ang tourism nila dito...

kahit nga kami pinag bawala n ng mga malaysian co workers namin na wag makipag sabay sa isang local na Malaysian in public, delikado daw... Ayaw ng mga Malay na lalaki na may kasamang taga ibang bansa ang mga babae nila... Kaya ang naririnig kong nagpapakentot ay mga Indonesian na kasama din namin sa trabaho...lol OT:D
Having sex tourism in Malaysia erases the fact that we still lag behind in terms of tourist arrivals?


It's not paninira, but it is true that there are Malaysian and Indonesian terrorists conspiring with ASG through Al Qaeda backed JI. That's reality.
Search mo. Read up, siguro naman malaking pinagkaiba ko sa DH (hindi sa nagmamaliit), totoo ang sinasabi ko.

Hindi rin fair tsong na sabihin mo na buong Southern Philippines yung may problema, kasi mali yang sinasabi mo.

Kaya pag sinasabihan ako ng mga Malaysians kung kakilala ng safety sa Pinas, eh sinasabihan ko, eh sa inyo nanggagaling ang mga trainers eh!

Isang bahagi lang yan ha. Sa tingin mo ba dahil being brotherly lang sila kaya nagpupumilit maging negotiator bet GRP and MILF? Hello sir, hindi. The motive is the Sabah issue. They want that kung ano mapagkasunduan bet MILF and GRP, dapat may sawsaw sila.

As for stating that Penang has sex tourism, hindi ko naman sinasabi na yun ang justification ko na mababa ang tourist arrivals natin kumpara sa kanila. In fact inexplain ko partly in the previous pages kung bakit people tend to overlook us.

My point is that you get a better perspective of what's going on. Nakita ko din ang mga tourism promotions nila. They have money to spend on it. They spend billions of dollars promoting it. Tayo, san tayo kukuha ng pera para sa ganyan? They have been doing hard selling for years, and for what? For disappointing destinations. Dyusme, nung pumunta ako ng KK last year, nadismaya ako. Eto ang sinasabi nilang truly asia? Bleh.

Again, my suggestion lang is put everything in proper perspective.

Meron din yan, pramis, wag maiingit. ;)

Just continue doing what you are doing, kundi mag blog ka about the Philippines tapos invite mo mga Malay na coworkers mo.

Mas maraming pera lang talaga sila para magbayad ng mga ads, AFAIK, last year bumaba ang tourism nila maski sa kakaadvertise, tapos tayo naman we were able to maintain and even register a minimal growth.

Ah bumaba pala? Kase mga 18 million yata yun several years tas umabot ng 23. million sa 2009... Then ngayon wala pang kalahati, 10 million na... So bumaba pala... :lol:

So Mas mayaman na ang Cambodia at Vietnam kesa sa atin kase naka pag advertise sila sa CNN, BBC etc...

Mayaman din tayo sa panahon ni Gordon as DOT Sec, pero ngayon pobre na tayo sa panahon ni Durano dahil hindi na tayo makapag advertise sa cable...


Ako na ang pinagagawa mo ng trabaho ng DOT dahil kulang ang effort nila, diba? diba?

Here we go again. :ohno:

i have to agree. Di kilala ang Pilipinas as tourist spot sa ibang bansa. Nagtataka nga ako kung ano ang ginagawa ng tourism secretary natin. Ang thailand, vietnam, malasysia, indonesia, etc, nakaparaming posters sa ibang bansa.

Ah bumaba pala? Kase mga 18 million yata yun several years tas umabot ng 23. million sa 2009... Then ngayon wala pang kalahati, 10 million na... So bumaba pala... :lol:

So Mas mayaman na ang Cambodia at Vietnam kesa sa atin kase naka pag advertise sila sa CNN, BBC etc...

Mayaman din tayo sa panahon ni Gordon as DOT Sec, pero ngayon pobre na tayo sa panahon ni Durano dahil hindi na tayo makapag advertise sa cable...


Ako na ang pinagagawa mo ng trabaho ng DOT dahil kulang ang effort nila, diba? diba?

Heto yun o -

Malaysia's hotel occupancy hit by downturn, H1N1 (http://www.asianewsnet.net/news.php?sec=2&id=7439)

That was last year.

Hindi ko sinabi na mas mayaman ang Cambodia and Vietnam. Maghunusdili ka nga. Pag inisip mo, magkano ba ang ginagastos natin sa ads kumpara sa kanila?

Malago ang tourism sa Cambodia because maraming may ari dyan ng kalupaan nila are foreigners like Singaporeans and Koreans who own resorts and hotels there. Likewise, ang spillover ng tourists sa international hubs like KL and Bangkok, marami ang nag-ooverland travel papunta sa Cambodia and Vietnam. Besides, napakaraming intra-regional flights sa area na ito. So natural mas mataas talaga ang arrivals nila.

Ang sinasabi ko hindi lang naman CNN at BBC ang basehan ng trabaho ng DoT. Sumasali tayo sa mga tourism expos sa Europa and other target markets.

Ang problema sa CNN at BBC, hindi targeted ang audience nyan. Sa tingin mo ba ang typical profile ng backpacker nanunuod ng BBC at CNN? Hindi ho. Usually, business traveler po ang target audience nyan.

Mahirap po yung ganyang mentalidad na dahil trabaho yan ng isang ahensya, wala na tayong karapatang tumulong. Eh kung ayaw mong tumulong, eh di wag diba? Sabi mo pa nga, gusto mong maglagay ng TV sa mall at magplay ng tourism ads ng Pinas, o bat mo pa gagawin yan, eh trabaho ng DoT yan.

It all boils down to one thing: malasakit sa bayan. You want change? Be the change.

Hindi ho ako nakikipag away pero nag-eexplain lang, wag ka namang mahighblood.

i have to agree. Di kilala ang Pilipinas as tourist spot sa ibang bansa. Nagtataka nga ako kung ano ang ginagawa ng tourism secretary natin. Ang thailand, vietnam, malasysia, indonesia, etc, nakaparaming posters sa ibang bansa.

I don't think priority ng incoming admin ang tourism, but we will see kung anong pakitang gilas ni Bertie Lim sa DoT. For the meantime, we should increase the infrastructure natin especially yung sa mga tourist destinations and then if the government is really serious of promoting tourism - they should match the billions of dollars ng karatig na mga bansa pagdating sa tourism spending.

Hetong part, tatagalugin ko ha. Kinausap ko ang isang taga M'sia na travel writer din at siempre pinuri ko yung laki ng tourism spending nila, ang sagot sa akin - "malaki din ang kurakot nila dyan."

Colorful na....hehe
Bro xxxrainxxx, kuha ka ng pulutan...hehehe


It's not paninira, but it is true that there are Malaysian and Indonesian terrorists conspiring with ASG through Al Qaeda backed JI. That's reality.
Search mo. Read up, siguro naman malaking pinagkaiba ko sa DH (hindi sa nagmamaliit), totoo ang sinasabi ko.

Hindi rin fair tsong na sabihin mo na buong Southern Philippines yung may problema, kasi mali yang sinasabi mo.

Kaya pag sinasabihan ako ng mga Malaysians kung kakilala ng safety sa Pinas, eh sinasabihan ko, eh sa inyo nanggagaling ang mga trainers eh!

Isang bahagi lang yan ha. Sa tingin mo ba dahil being brotherly lang sila kaya nagpupumilit maging negotiator bet GRP and MILF? Hello sir, hindi. The motive is the Sabah issue. They want that kung ano mapagkasunduan bet MILF and GRP, dapat may sawsaw sila.

As for stating that Penang has sex tourism, hindi ko naman sinasabi na yun ang justification ko na mababa ang tourist arrivals natin kumpara sa kanila. In fact inexplain ko partly in the previous pages kung bakit people tend to overlook us.

My point is that you get a better perspective of what's going on. Nakita ko din ang mga tourism promotions nila. They have money to spend on it. They spend billions of dollars promoting it. Tayo, san tayo kukuha ng pera para sa ganyan? They have been doing hard selling for years, and for what? For disappointing destinations. Dyusme, nung pumunta ako ng KK last year, nadismaya ako. Eto ang sinasabi nilang truly asia? Bleh.

Again, my suggestion lang is put everything in proper perspective.


Sus isesearch ko pa?
totoo nga siguro pero ako ngayon ko lang nalaman coz the main issue is the abusayyaff... And it's in the Philippines, and it's true and is famous around the world? Sa madaling salita, pinag uusapan... Pero about them and la Qda, naku! Baka ma litson ako dito kung i oopen up ko yan...

Dito nanaman papasok ang DOT, anong ginawa ng DOT pag alcontra ?



Don't be bitter, baka ma litson nanaman ako nyan... Di ako nakikipag away sa kanila...Para kang bata na di inaamin na we lag interms of tourism and one factor is our government is not giving their full effort sa pag promote ng bansa natin...
:ohno:

Mali pa ang sinabi ko? Di mo ba alam na drinawing ko pa ang mapa ng Pilipinas sa harap nila? Smart daw talaga ang pilipino...hahaha. And I refered to the tip most islands of Tawi Tawi and Basilan, nothing else... kaya ang reaction nila, "ahhh so its only very small islands"...

nang hahalungkat kapa ng baho ng iba... Pinag uusapan mo ang Al Qda na mga Malaysians pero ba't maraming pumupunta dito?


Kaya nga i prove mo sa akin na yang sex tourism ba na yan ng Penang accounts 50 - 90 % ng total tourists dito... Pag na prove mo yan, parang luluwag ang dibdib ko... Mag hanap ka na ng article, daliii!

Please counter my observations here as an OFW for almost a year na gala ng gala dito... Mind you, mababawasan ang envy ko nyan about sa mass tourism nila...;)



Really? Dissapointing destinations? I agree na MAS MAGANDA ANG PILIPINAS kaysa sa Malaysia pero para malaman mo, hindi naman po dissapointing yung destinations nila dito... Ikaw na nag sabi, na they promote hardly for years just for dissapointing destinations? IMO di naman siguro mga bobo ang mga Malay na promote ng promote pero wala namang ma i-ooffer... huh! :ohno:

I keep on saying na Mas maganda pa ang Pilipinas kaysa sa Malaysia, not being biased kase Pilipino ako pero i can also attest na napaka ganda ng LANGKAWI, PENANG island, PANGKOR island, CAMERON highlands, GENTING highlands, bukit PERAK, ALO SETAR...etc... KL? normal lang


note: hindi ko idedefend ang bansang to kung totoong hindi talaga maganda ang bansang to... yan din ang attitude ko noon, sinasabi ko sa Cebu thread na pangit ang Penang pero hindi ko talaga maitatago na mas napreserve pa nila ang history nila kesa sa Cebu... You can still capture the ancient Geoge Town, very rich in heritage naming the city as a UNESCO world heritage site...

Pero kung sayo, pangit talaga ang malaysia, nasa sayo na yun...

Basta I'm still very optimistic about Cebu's tourism industry... HOPING to explode someday interms of tourism...:okay:


HEY DUDE, yung Question ko! Dinedeadma mo eh...huhuhu

Having sex tourism in Malaysia erases the fact that we still lag behind in terms of tourist arrivals?

i have to agree. Di kilala ang Pilipinas as tourist spot sa ibang bansa. Nagtataka nga ako kung ano ang ginagawa ng tourism secretary natin. Ang thailand, vietnam, malasysia, indonesia, etc, nakaparaming posters sa ibang bansa.Para sa akin ok lang naman yung ginawa ng DOT. Let's face it, mababa ang budget nila, and I think mas binigyan nilang priority yung mga advertisements sa mga bansa na target nila. For example, yung ginawa nila sa London Taxis, or pagkausap sa travel agents sa Russia, Middle East, or pagsali sa mga tourist exhibitions, expos, etc. I think mas effective yun sa tourist arrivals natin. It reached 3M in 2008 and 2009, the highest in our history. Pati tourism receipts, highest din sa history natin. Although I know na hindi kasing dami ng sa ibang bansa pero nevertheless mataas pa rin. Hindi naman ito contest ng paramihan ng tousits eh. We need their money, not just visitors. I think mas i-prioritize yung pagtaas ng tourism receipts rather than tourist arrival. Kasi kung sobrang dami, mas mahirap mag-maintain ng mga masisirang environment. Also, sa ngayon, hindi makakayang i-absorb ng facilities and infra natin ang sobrang daming tourists. Sa NAIA pa lang, magsisikip agad yun kahit kakabukas palang ng T3.

tanong lang, anong thread to?

tourism o terrorism:D

at bakit kayo nag aaway?
pag si jpdm andito aawayin ko rin yun:D

j/k:D

Heto yun o -

Malaysia's hotel occupancy hit by downturn, H1N1 (http://www.asianewsnet.net/news.php?sec=2&id=7439)

That was last year.

Hindi ko sinabi na mas mayaman ang Cambodia and Vietnam. Maghunusdili ka nga. Pag inisip mo, magkano ba ang ginagastos natin sa ads kumpara sa kanila?

Malago ang tourism sa Cambodia because maraming may ari dyan ng kalupaan nila are foreigners like Singaporeans and Koreans who own resorts and hotels there. Likewise, ang spillover ng tourists sa international hubs like KL and Bangkok, marami ang nag-ooverland travel papunta sa Cambodia and Vietnam. Besides, napakaraming intra-regional flights sa area na ito. So natural mas mataas talaga ang arrivals nila.

Ang sinasabi ko hindi lang naman CNN at BBC ang basehan ng trabaho ng DoT. Sumasali tayo sa mga tourism expos sa Europa and other target markets.

Ang problema sa CNN at BBC, hindi targeted ang audience nyan. Sa tingin mo ba ang typical profile ng backpacker nanunuod ng BBC at CNN? Hindi ho. Usually, business traveler po ang target audience nyan.

Mahirap po yung ganyang mentalidad na dahil trabaho yan ng isang ahensya, wala na tayong karapatang tumulong. Eh kung ayaw mong tumulong, eh di wag diba? Sabi mo pa nga, gusto mong maglagay ng TV sa mall at magplay ng tourism ads ng Pinas, o bat mo pa gagawin yan, eh trabaho ng DoT yan.

It all boils down to one thing: malasakit sa bayan. You want change? Be the change.

Hindi ho ako nakikipag away pero nag-eexplain lang, wag ka namang mahighblood.

eh dahil yan sa H1N1 eh, kahit sa Pilipinas naapektuhan din diba? pati buong mundo, diba? Di naman ito internal problem kagaya ng sa atin...

Kulang eh, Kulang talaga ginagawa nila... Wala talaga!
Wa kang magalit bro, nadissapoint lang ako sa DOT natin... Ilalabas ko na ngayon dito...

Idol ko si Gloria until now, marami siyang nagawa sa Cebu but exept sa tourism industry natin... Yun nga, hindi priority, meaning less ang effort for that... Sana naman lakihan ang effort coz I can really observe here na makaka bigay talaga ng pagkain sa mga pinaka mahihirap na locals a tourism lalo na sa Pilipinas na maraming mahihirap sa mga tourist belt areas...
Example lang sa Langkawi, taga hila lang ng jetski na mahirap na taga Langkawi, binigyan na siya ng RM50 or P600...

Idol ko pa din si Durano, Cebuano kase:D... pero hindi ko nagustuhan ang pamamalakad niya...


Parang nakakalito yung mga sinasabi ko no:lol:
Mahirap ang sitwasyon ko, nakaka lito... About kay Durano, about sa Pilipinas, about sa Malaysia... positive ako lahat kahit kinocompare ko ang dalawa...

I dunno, basta that is my conclusion sa na observe ko dito. Hindi sa pera kung hindi sa effort ng Government sa pag promote ng bansa natin... Di ko kase na fifeel, as in ZERO talaga ang Pilipinas interms of information...

Don't hate me, coz I'm also with you...

Before ako pumunta dito akala ko maraming turista dito pero pag dating ko dito, di pala marami kung di napaka rami... beyond my expectation... para akong binuhusan ng mainit na tubig... sabay mukmok... gusto kong maging masaya kase makaka lakwatsa na ako dito pero every tourist spot na pupuntahan ko, mas nangingibabaw ang lungkoy kaysa excitement...
Dunno kung anong tawag dito, masyado lang ba akong proud sa Pilipinas kaya ko na fefeel to?

Forgive me for arguing... Isa lang talaga naiisip ko ngayon, FRUSTRATED SA DOT...:(

Colorful na....hehe
Bro xxxrainxxx, kuha ka ng pulutan...hehehe





Sus isesearch ko pa?
totoo nga siguro pero ako ngayon ko lang nalaman coz the main issue is the abusayyaff... And it's in the Philippines, and it's true and is famous around the world? Sa madaling salita, pinag uusapan... Pero about them and la Qda, naku! Baka ma litson ako dito kung i oopen up ko yan...

Dito nanaman papasok ang DOT, anong ginawa ng DOT pag alcontra ?



Don't be bitter, baka ma litson nanaman ako nyan... Di ako nakikipag away sa kanila...Para kang bata na di inaamin na we lag interms of tourism and one factor is our government is not giving their full effort sa pag promote ng bansa natin...
:ohno:

Mali pa ang sinabi ko? Di mo ba alam na drinawing ko pa ang mapa ng Pilipinas sa harap nila? Smart daw talaga ang pilipino...hahaha. And I refered to the tip most islands of Tawi Tawi and Basilan, nothing else... kaya ang reaction nila, "ahhh so its only very small islands"...

nang hahalungkat kapa ng baho ng iba... Pinag uusapan mo ang Al Qda na mga Malaysians pero ba't maraming pumupunta dito?


Kaya nga i prove mo sa akin na yang sex tourism ba na yan ng Penang accounts 50 - 90 % ng total tourists dito... Pag na prove mo yan, parang luluwag ang dibdib ko... Mag hanap ka na ng article, daliii!

Please counter my observations here as an OFW for almost a year na gala ng gala dito... Mind you, mababawasan ang envy ko nyan about sa mass tourism nila...;)



Really? Dissapointing destinations? I agree na MAS MAGANDA ANG PILIPINAS kaysa sa Malaysia pero para malaman mo, hindi naman po dissapointing yung destinations nila dito... Ikaw na nag sabi, na they promote hardly for years just for dissapointing destinations? IMO di naman siguro mga bobo ang mga Malay na promote ng promote pero wala namang ma i-ooffer... huh! :ohno:

I keep on saying na Mas maganda pa ang Pilipinas kaysa sa Malaysia, not being biased kase Pilipino ako pero i can also attest na napaka ganda ng LANGKAWI, PENANG island, PANGKOR island, CAMERON highlands, GENTING highlands, bukit PERAK, ALO SETAR...etc... KL? normal lang


note: hindi ko idedefend ang bansang to kung totoong hindi talaga maganda ang bansang to... yan din ang attitude ko noon, sinasabi ko sa Cebu thread na pangit ang Penang pero hindi ko talaga maitatago na mas napreserve pa nila ang history nila kesa sa Cebu... You can still capture the ancient Geoge Town, very rich in heritage naming the city as a UNESCO world heritage site...

Pero kung sayo, pangit talaga ang malaysia, nasa sayo na yun...

Basta I'm still very optimistic about Cebu's tourism industry... HOPING to explode someday interms of tourism...:okay:


HEY DUDE, yung Question ko! Dinedeadma mo eh...huhuhu

Having sex tourism in Malaysia erases the fact that we still lag behind in terms of tourist arrivals?



dyuskupo ang kulay, langya ka, may sakit pa naman ako ngayon.

haba ng sagot mo, heto habang nag aantay ng taxi, sagot muna ako:

1- Hindi ko naman kelangan diba sabihin na we lag, because obvious naman eh, malaki ang diperensya sa tourism arrivals. But I see it in a different way, I see our potential, I see considerable growth in our tourism, I am an optimist. I don't focus on something we're bad at right now, I focus on something of what we can be.

2- Hindi sa hinalungkat ko ang baho nila, pero I'd like to promote the country on a slight more even keel. Put them in their right places. Give them a more balanced perspective. Hindi naman pwedeng kada tirada nila sa atin, tatahimik ako. No sir. I know better than that.


3- Sa totoo lang dre, I am not a big fan of mass tourism. Sa totoo lang din, I campaign against it. I personally think that it is destructive to the local culture, community and the environment. Sa totoo lang din, they can have mass tourism, mas gusto ko sa Pinas is niche tourism. High quality, high spenders. Mas mahal pero mas sulit.

4- OA ka naman, bakit, 90% ba ng turista sa Pinas eh sex tours ba? Hindi din naman ah. Ang kulit mo naman, the reason I cited yung bansa mo, because I want a balanced discussion. Hindi din naman tayo malinis, at hindi rin malinis ang bansa na tinitirhan mo ngayon - in short, wag din silang magmalinis. Yun ang point ko.

5- Regarding disappointing destinations, may ugat yan. Nung una, ang taas ng expectations ko bago ako pumunta dyan. Hindi pala. Marumi din. Mabaho. Andaming skwater. Maraming mandurugas. Hindi din pala ganun kasarap ang pagkain (ewan ko lang sa Penang- highly recommended yang food dyan). I am willing to give it another try, pero yung first impression ko hindi maganda.

Yung Georgetown pre, sa tingin mo ba mas maganda kesa sa Vigan- a UNESCO World Heritage City? Honest answer lang.

Yung Cebu, hindi sa hindi napreserve, but Cebu was not spared from the massive bombing during the WW2 kagaya ng Manila. So what can you expect diba?


HEY DUDE, yung Question ko! Dinedeadma mo eh...huhuhu

Having sex tourism in Malaysia erases the fact that we still lag behind in terms of tourist arrivals?

Uy, hindi ko kaya dinedma. Ang sagot ko, kanina pa ha:


As for stating that Penang has sex tourism, hindi ko naman sinasabi na yun ang justification ko na mababa ang tourist arrivals natin kumpara sa kanila. In fact inexplain ko partly in the previous pages kung bakit people tend to overlook us.

My point is that you get a better perspective of what's going on. Nakita ko din ang mga tourism promotions nila. They have money to spend on it. They spend billions of dollars promoting it. Tayo, san tayo kukuha ng pera para sa ganyan?

we should increase the infrastructure natin especially yung sa mga tourist destinations and then if the government is really serious of promoting tourism - they should match the billions of dollars ng karatig na mga bansa pagdating sa tourism spending.



Maraming factors kung bakit mababa ang tourist arrivals natin:

These are some of the factors that I can think of at the mo:

1. We are literally off the SE Asian travel trail. Hindi convenient. At mahal. Think of this. If you are flying into BKK, you can just take the overland route and hit Cambodia, Laos, Burma and Vietnam.

Maraming budget airlines that cater within this loop. Ang Pilipinas and to a certain extent Indonesia (except Bali) nahiwalay.

2. Kulang sa infrastructure ang turismo natin. Kumpara sa ibang bansa na sinasabi mo, baguhan lang ang Pilipinas sa turismo. Walang standardised na hotel and resort prices. Roads need to be built more, safety in aviation, frequency of flights, and safety in overland or maritime travel. Dyan kulang tayo.


3. Yung sinasabi mong ads on CNN at BBC, mahal yan and hindi masyadong targeted ang audience. Wag mong basta lang sisihin ang government natin, kasi maliit talaga ang budget na binibigay sa tourism promotion. Akala mo ba may binibigay na pondo ang government sa mga embahada natin para sa tourism? Think again.

Kaya yung mga embahada natin think of other things to promote like joining expos, sometimes sponsoring junket trips for foreign writers, etc etc. Sa totoo lang sa liit or ni sa walang budget na binibigay, maraming nagagawa ang mga embahada natin.

Regarding sa sex tourism, ang sa akin lang, put it in a proper perspective, hindi ko naman denedeny eh, pero ilagay lang sa lugar minsan ang mga outrageous claims natin ha.

dyuskupo ang kulay, langya ka, may sakit pa naman ako ngayon.

haba ng sagot mo, heto habang nag aantay ng taxi, sagot muna ako:

1- Hindi ko naman kelangan diba sabihin na we lag, because obvious naman eh, malaki ang diperensya sa tourism arrivals. But I see it in a different way, I see our potential, I see considerable growth in our tourism, I am an optimist. I don't focus on something we're bad at right now, I focus on something of what we can be.

2- Hindi sa hinalungkat ko ang baho nila, pero I'd like to promote the country on a slight more even keel. Put them in their right places. Give them a more balanced perspective. Hindi naman pwedeng kada tirada nila sa atin, tatahimik ako. No sir. I know better than that.


3- Sa totoo lang dre, I am not a big fan of mass tourism. Sa totoo lang din, I campaign against it. I personally think that it is destructive to the local culture, community and the environment. Sa totoo lang din, they can have mass tourism, mas gusto ko sa Pinas is niche tourism. High quality, high spenders. Mas mahal pero mas sulit.

4- OA ka naman, bakit, 90% ba ng turista sa Pinas eh sex tours ba? Hindi din naman ah. Ang kulit mo naman, the reason I cited yung bansa mo, because I want a balanced discussion. Hindi din naman tayo malinis, at hindi rin malinis ang bansa na tinitirhan mo ngayon - in short, wag din silang magmalinis. Yun ang point ko.

5- Regarding disappointing destinations, may ugat yan. Nung una, ang taas ng expectations ko bago ako pumunta dyan. Hindi pala. Marumi din. Mabaho. Andaming skwater. Maraming mandurugas. Hindi din pala ganun kasarap ang pagkain (ewan ko lang sa Penang- highly recommended yang food dyan). I am willing to give it another try, pero yung first impression ko hindi maganda.

Yung Georgetown pre, sa tingin mo ba mas maganda kesa sa Vigan- a UNESCO World Heritage City? Honest answer lang.

Yung Cebu, hindi sa hindi napreserve, but Cebu was not spared from the massive bombing during the WW2 kagaya ng Manila. So what can you expect diba?


HEY DUDE, yung Question ko! Dinedeadma mo eh...huhuhu

Having sex tourism in Malaysia erases the fact that we still lag behind in terms of tourist arrivals?

Uy, hindi ko kaya dinedma. Ang sagot ko, kanina pa ha:

you want balance? Pero yung discription mo sa Malaysia... di yata balance, sobra naman... One sided ka naman eh...
I agree naman sa basura pero sa skwater, wala pa akong nakita eh...

Pero ok, yun siguro na observe mo... I respect:)

5- Regarding disappointing destinations, may ugat yan. Nung una, ang taas ng expectations ko bago ako pumunta dyan. Hindi pala. Marumi din. Mabaho. Andaming skwater. Maraming mandurugas. Hindi din pala ganun kasarap ang pagkain (ewan ko lang sa Penang- highly recommended yang food dyan). I am willing to give it another try, pero yung first impression ko hindi maganda.



4- OA ka naman, bakit, 90% ba ng turista sa Pinas eh sex tours ba? Hindi din naman ah. Ang kulit mo naman, the reason I cited yung bansa mo, because I want a balanced discussion. Hindi din naman tayo malinis, at hindi rin malinis ang bansa na tinitirhan mo ngayon - in short, wag din silang magmalinis. Yun ang point ko.

nge, bansa ko? por dios por santo, wag mo akong tawaging Malaysian, tumitindig balaahibo ko... Pinoy yata to, GWAPO! :lol:

3- Sa totoo lang dre, I am not a big fan of mass tourism. Sa totoo lang din, I campaign against it. I personally think that it is destructive to the local culture, community and the environment. Sa totoo lang din, they can have mass tourism, mas gusto ko sa Pinas is niche tourism. High quality, high spenders. Mas mahal pero mas sulit.

me too, pero yan kase sa tingin ko ang makakapag bigay ng pagkain sa mesa 3 times a day ng mga pinakamahihirap nating kababayan sa mga pinaka isolated na lugar, isolated pero paraiso sa ganda...


2- Hindi sa hinalungkat ko ang baho nila, pero I'd like to promote the country on a slight more even keel. Put them in their right places. Give them a more balanced perspective. Hindi naman pwedeng kada tirada nila sa atin, tatahimik ako. No sir. I know better than that.

hindi naman ako nila tinitira eh, kung i explain ko sa kanila, nakaka intindi naman sila... kahit sila, umaamin din naman sa mga downturns nila ah, inaamin nga nila na Muslim is no good, Christian ok...
Basta ang attitude ko bro, I talk to them in a friendly manner, not telling them the truth about their negative traits... bahala na kung sila ang unang mag sabi... Inopen up ko din tungkol sa abu sayyaf coz it's true naman... Nag open din sila na nightlife is pale dito sa bansa nila... mabait naman sila...;)


1- Hindi ko naman kelangan diba sabihin na we lag, because obvious naman eh, malaki ang diperensya sa tourism arrivals. But I see it in a different way, I see our potential, I see considerable growth in our tourism, I am an optimist. I don't focus on something we're bad at right now, I focus on something of what we can be.

Same... siguro hindi ko lang talaga na vivisualize ang technique ng DOT natin about sa promotions nila basta the way I see it interms of effort, mahina talaga which is before na wala pa akong kaalam alam sa the way Malaysia interms of promotion, paulit ulit kong sinasabi na Sec Ace is a good Sec pero ngayon na naranasan ko na, na halos araw araw may news sila about tourism where sa Pilipinas na mabibilang lang...




I hope you understand bro...hehe

BTW, ito yung explanation ko about why our country lag behind our neighbors interms of tourism... and as a feeling DOT secretary:D Sana...hehe... Ito ang plano ko...


From Cebu thread feb 25
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=52538911&postcount=68408

Kung CEBU ray ma ila as a tourist destination sa Pilipinas, wa gihapoy manganha diha kay mahal ang pyahe nya tuyuonon pa gyud... Nya after nila sa Cebu, manguli na sila, alkansehon sila sa ilang vacation...


Mao ni akong na discover sa akong research...
Ang Cebuano nga perting suyaa sa mga turista ning nasura akong gi trabahoan karon...lol
Mga turistang nindot kaayo singhagan, "nganong di man mo mangadto sa Pilipinas! BKS ron!"...



It's time for CamSur to be known worldwide... I really hope CAMSUR will be known worldwide....
CEBU and CAMSUR offers different tourist attreaction.
I hope BORACAY will also be promoted more. And then next should be PALAWAN should be promoted more! Then BOHOL! Then SIARGAO! at VIGAN...
Kahit yan lang ang i pupush through natin to promote those spots to the WORLD...

Each of those places should emerge EQUALLY to world's famous islands or cities along the "SOUTH EAST ASIAN TOURIST CORRIDOR"... If the Philippines will not do something to promote these places, maiiwan at maiiwan pa din tayo!

"SOUTH EAST ASIAN TOURIST CORRIDOR"... vs "PHILIPPINE TOURIST CORRIDOR"
http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/9307/tourrismcorridor.jpg

WHy!:
Coz if a tourist visits the Philippines, means 1 country to visit on an expensive plane ticket. On his Philippine visit can cost him about $700 to $1000.

If he will take the SOUTHEAST ASIAN TOURIST CORRIDOR, it will only cost him more or less $2000.

$1000 in one country alone of UNFAMOUS/UNKNOWN destinations... (unknown but breathtaking destinations)
compared to
$2000 in 4 countries of 8 WORLD FAMOUS destinations...

maliban nalang kung...
May pangalan na ang PALAWAN like BALI, or CEBU like PHUKET, or VIGAN like PENANG, or BORACAY like LANGKAWI... We can make our own tourist corridor... Eh ano ngayon kung isang bansa lang pupuntahan nila?, sikat naman sa buong mundo ang Bohol, Palawan, Cebu, Vigan, Camsur, Bohol etc...

I always interview tourists here why they visit Penang, Langkawi, Bali, Phuket etc... They always answer, "coz Langkawi is FAMOUS for their beaches and sunset"... "coz Penang / George Town is FAMOUS as a unesco world heritage site and their beaches"... "coz Bali is FAMOUS all over the world"... "coz Phuket is very FAMOUS"...

the word is "FAMOUS"...

So if our islands will be FAMOUS around the world, or will be "as FAMOUS as those places"... we can reach or near Malaysias 20million foreign tourist a year, Thailands 15million, Singapore's 11million as compared to our current 5million foreign tourist per year...

I hope gastuan na gyud sa atong government, sa new administration puhon ang massive promotion sa atong mga tourist destination aorund the world...

you want balance? Pero yung discription mo sa Malaysia... di yata balance, sobra naman... One sided ka naman eh...
I agree naman sa basura pero sa skwater, wala pa akong nakita eh...

Pero ok, yun siguro na observe mo... I respect:)

5- Regarding disappointing destinations, may ugat yan. Nung una, ang taas ng expectations ko bago ako pumunta dyan. Hindi pala. Marumi din. Mabaho. Andaming skwater. Maraming mandurugas. Hindi din pala ganun kasarap ang pagkain (ewan ko lang sa Penang- highly recommended yang food dyan). I am willing to give it another try, pero yung first impression ko hindi maganda.



4- OA ka naman, bakit, 90% ba ng turista sa Pinas eh sex tours ba? Hindi din naman ah. Ang kulit mo naman, the reason I cited yung bansa mo, because I want a balanced discussion. Hindi din naman tayo malinis, at hindi rin malinis ang bansa na tinitirhan mo ngayon - in short, wag din silang magmalinis. Yun ang point ko.

nge, bansa ko? por dios por santo, wag mo akong tawaging Malaysian, tumitindig balaahibo ko... Pinoy yata to, GWAPO! :lol:

3- Sa totoo lang dre, I am not a big fan of mass tourism. Sa totoo lang din, I campaign against it. I personally think that it is destructive to the local culture, community and the environment. Sa totoo lang din, they can have mass tourism, mas gusto ko sa Pinas is niche tourism. High quality, high spenders. Mas mahal pero mas sulit.

me too, pero yan kase sa tingin ko ang makakapag bigay ng pagkain sa mesa 3 times a day ng mga pinakamahihirap nating kababayan sa mga pinaka isolated na lugar, isolated pero paraiso sa ganda...


2- Hindi sa hinalungkat ko ang baho nila, pero I'd like to promote the country on a slight more even keel. Put them in their right places. Give them a more balanced perspective. Hindi naman pwedeng kada tirada nila sa atin, tatahimik ako. No sir. I know better than that.

hindi naman ako nila tinitira eh, kung i explain ko sa kanila, nakaka intindi naman sila... kahit sila, umaamin din naman sa mga downturns nila ah, inaamin nga nila na Muslim is no good, Christian ok...
Basta ang attitude ko bro, I talk to them in a friendly manner, not telling them the truth about their negative traits... bahala na kung sila ang unang mag sabi... Inopen up ko din tungkol sa abu sayyaf coz it's true naman... Nag open din sila na nightlife is pale dito sa bansa nila... mabait naman sila...;)


1- Hindi ko naman kelangan diba sabihin na we lag, because obvious naman eh, malaki ang diperensya sa tourism arrivals. But I see it in a different way, I see our potential, I see considerable growth in our tourism, I am an optimist. I don't focus on something we're bad at right now, I focus on something of what we can be.

Same... siguro hindi ko lang talaga na vivisualize ang technique ng DOT natin about sa promotions nila basta the way I see it interms of effort, mahina talaga which is before na wala pa akong kaalam alam sa the way Malaysia interms of promotion, paulit ulit kong sinasabi na Sec Ace is a good Sec pero ngayon na naranasan ko na, na halos araw araw may news sila about tourism where sa Pilipinas na mabibilang lang...




I hope you understand bro...hehe


1. Dude, yung skwater, nahuli ko sa KK malapit sa airport nila. Nakafence nga lang, pero habang dumadaan kami, may isang bahagi ng wall ang may sira so nakita namin yung isang malaking skwater (yung tipong mala pelikula sa atin, as in barong barong on stilts na sobrang dumi). Napatawa na lang kami ng kasama kong Australyano at nasambit namin - Kampung Ayer!! :D

Before ako nakatungtong ng bansa mo, bilib na bilib ako, sabi ko mukhang maganda nga dun ah! Ayaw kong maniwala sa mga kaibigan kong expats and Pinoy na hindi maganda dyan. Ayun, ng pumunta ako dun, dun ako naniwala. On our last day there, muntik pa akong hulidapin ng mga Malays malapit sa Money Changer in broad daylight (9am ng umaga). Sa sobrang pikon namin, we left early and went to the airport 6 hours before our flight back to the Philippines.

2. when I say bansa mo, bansa na tinitirhan ngayon. hello. LOL. tamad na ako magtype haba eh kasi sabihin na "bansa na tinitirhan mo ngayon" LOL. in fairness guapo and guapa man gd ang mga Pinoy. HAHAHAHA. Malaki pa. Ang masels. bwahahahaha.:lol::lol::lol:

3. Yung araw araw nila talagang tourism promotion, wala akong masabi dyan. Marami talaga ang pera nila and hindi lang din naman sa DoT yan nakakasalalay kundi a) prioridad ba ng Presidente and turismo? b) yung mga tongressman natin, nagtatrabaho ba at nakikita ba nila ang importansya ng turismo?

Wala eh, pipitsugin talaga ang budget na binibigay sa DoT kaya maski sino maupo dyan (wag lang si Boy Abundat at si Jim Paredes), kulang pa din ang magagawa ng DoT natin.

Dito sa bansa na tinitirhan ko, ni wala nga tayong tourism attache. Nakaoutsource sya sa isang travel agency. Kakalungkot, sabi ko bakit wala.. eh wala talagang budget eh. I even offered to help them out. (which reminds me to drop by the embassy soon). The same thing is replicated all over the world. Yung mga cabs and buses sa London na may wow philippines you think may budget sila dun sa London? wala po sir. Mismong kaibigan kung kasama sa embahada dun nagsabi wala talaga.

Naiintindihan ko din ang frustrations mo, kasi ganun din ako. Kaya I started blogging and trying to help them out. I have a pet proposal here that may actually take off. Partnering with the TV channel here to do an exchange of shows featuring VN and Pinas. Sana matuloy.

BTW, ito yung explanation ko about why our country lag behind our neighbors interms of tourism... and as a feeling DOT secretary:D Sana...hehe... Ito ang plano ko...


From Cebu thread feb 25
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=52538911&postcount=68408

Kung CEBU ray ma ila as a tourist destination sa Pilipinas, wa gihapoy manganha diha kay mahal ang pyahe nya tuyuonon pa gyud... Nya after nila sa Cebu, manguli na sila, alkansehon sila sa ilang vacation...


Mao ni akong na discover sa akong research...
Ang Cebuano nga perting suyaa sa mga turista ning nasura akong gi trabahoan karon...lol
Mga turistang nindot kaayo singhagan, "nganong di man mo mangadto sa Pilipinas! BKS ron!"...



It's time for CamSur to be known worldwide... I really hope CAMSUR will be known worldwide....
CEBU and CAMSUR offers different tourist attreaction.
I hope BORACAY will also be promoted more. And then next should be PALAWAN should be promoted more! Then BOHOL! Then SIARGAO! at VIGAN...
Kahit yan lang ang i pupush through natin to promote those spots to the WORLD...

Each of those places should emerge EQUALLY to world's famous islands or cities along the "SOUTH EAST ASIAN TOURIST CORRIDOR"... If the Philippines will not do something to promote these places, maiiwan at maiiwan pa din tayo!

"SOUTH EAST ASIAN TOURIST CORRIDOR"... vs "PHILIPPINE TOURIST CORRIDOR"
http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/9307/tourrismcorridor.jpg

WHy!:
Coz if a tourist visits the Philippines, means 1 country to visit on an expensive plane ticket. On his Philippine visit can cost him about $700 to $1000.

If he will take the SOUTHEAST ASIAN TOURIST CORRIDOR, it will only cost him more or less $2000.

$1000 in one country alone of UNFAMOUS/UNKNOWN destinations... (unknown but breathtaking destinations)
compared to
$2000 in 4 countries of 8 WORLD FAMOUS destinations...

maliban nalang kung...
May pangalan na ang PALAWAN like BALI, or CEBU like PHUKET, or VIGAN like PENANG, or BORACAY like LANGKAWI... We can make our own tourist corridor... Eh ano ngayon kung isang bansa lang pupuntahan nila?, sikat naman sa buong mundo ang Bohol, Palawan, Cebu, Vigan, Camsur, Bohol etc...

I always interview tourists here why they visit Penang, Langkawi, Bali, Phuket etc... They always answer, "coz Langkawi is FAMOUS for their beaches and sunset"... "coz Penang / George Town is FAMOUS as a unesco world heritage site and their beaches"... "coz Bali is FAMOUS all over the world"... "coz Phuket is very FAMOUS"...

the word is "FAMOUS"...

So if our islands will be FAMOUS around the world, or will be "as FAMOUS as those places"... we can reach or near Malaysias 20million foreign tourist a year, Thailands 15million, Singapore's 11million as compared to our current 5million foreign tourist per year...

I hope gastuan na gyud sa atong government, sa new administration puhon ang massive promotion sa atong mga tourist destination aorund the world...


Okay yan, but don't skip Banawe/Batad Rice Terraces.. :) UNESCO lister din yan.

Whatever they say about phillippines. Let's us continue to promote philippines tourism.

My way, I promote philippines tourism in my three (3) website.

1. Dude, yung skwater, nahuli ko sa KK malapit sa airport nila. Nakafence nga lang, pero habang dumadaan kami, may isang bahagi ng wall ang may sira so nakita namin yung isang malaking skwater (yung tipong mala pelikula sa atin, as in barong barong on stilts na sobrang dumi). Napatawa na lang kami ng kasama kong Australyano at nasambit namin - Kampung Ayer!! :D



Naku! ba't ka tumawa? You mean natutuwa ka dahil may nakita kang skwater sa bansang to?
It's a bad attitude dude...
Nakaka lungkot naman, may guts pa tayong tumawa, pareho lang naman, third world country ang mga bansang to...:ohno:

Pero so far wala akong nakikitang skwaters from KL to Penang... Duno sa mga bundok, meron siguro pero infairness, maganda dito... Pero yun nga lang marumi per maganda:) ... Sunod na puntahan ko ang Perinthian island sa South China Sea banda... But ofcourse mas maganda pa kaya ang Cebu at ang Pilipinas may skwater o wala...

guys, Please post your picture regarding tourist spot in the philippines. http://www.xdownx.org/index.php?/forum/34-tourist-spot/


Thanks

BTW, ito yung explanation ko about why our country lag behind our neighbors interms of tourism... and as a feeling DOT secretary:D Sana...hehe... Ito ang plano ko...


From Cebu thread feb 25
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=52538911&postcount=68408

Kung CEBU ray ma ila as a tourist destination sa Pilipinas, wa gihapoy manganha diha kay mahal ang pyahe nya tuyuonon pa gyud... Nya after nila sa Cebu, manguli na sila, alkansehon sila sa ilang vacation...


Mao ni akong na discover sa akong research...
Ang Cebuano nga perting suyaa sa mga turista ning nasura akong gi trabahoan karon...lol
Mga turistang nindot kaayo singhagan, "nganong di man mo mangadto sa Pilipinas! BKS ron!"...



It's time for CamSur to be known worldwide... I really hope CAMSUR will be known worldwide....
CEBU and CAMSUR offers different tourist attreaction.
I hope BORACAY will also be promoted more. And then next should be PALAWAN should be promoted more! Then BOHOL! Then SIARGAO! at VIGAN...
Kahit yan lang ang i pupush through natin to promote those spots to the WORLD...

Each of those places should emerge EQUALLY to world's famous islands or cities along the "SOUTH EAST ASIAN TOURIST CORRIDOR"... If the Philippines will not do something to promote these places, maiiwan at maiiwan pa din tayo!

"SOUTH EAST ASIAN TOURIST CORRIDOR"... vs "PHILIPPINE TOURIST CORRIDOR"
http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/9307/tourrismcorridor.jpg

WHy!:
Coz if a tourist visits the Philippines, means 1 country to visit on an expensive plane ticket. On his Philippine visit can cost him about $700 to $1000.

If he will take the SOUTHEAST ASIAN TOURIST CORRIDOR, it will only cost him more or less $2000.

$1000 in one country alone of UNFAMOUS/UNKNOWN destinations... (unknown but breathtaking destinations)
compared to
$2000 in 4 countries of 8 WORLD FAMOUS destinations...

maliban nalang kung...
May pangalan na ang PALAWAN like BALI, or CEBU like PHUKET, or VIGAN like PENANG, or BORACAY like LANGKAWI... We can make our own tourist corridor... Eh ano ngayon kung isang bansa lang pupuntahan nila?, sikat naman sa buong mundo ang Bohol, Palawan, Cebu, Vigan, Camsur, Bohol etc...

I always interview tourists here why they visit Penang, Langkawi, Bali, Phuket etc... They always answer, "coz Langkawi is FAMOUS for their beaches and sunset"... "coz Penang / George Town is FAMOUS as a unesco world heritage site and their beaches"... "coz Bali is FAMOUS all over the world"... "coz Phuket is very FAMOUS"...

the word is "FAMOUS"...

So if our islands will be FAMOUS around the world, or will be "as FAMOUS as those places"... we can reach or near Malaysias 20million foreign tourist a year, Thailands 15million, Singapore's 11million as compared to our current 5million foreign tourist per year...

I hope gastuan na gyud sa atong government, sa new administration puhon ang massive promotion sa atong mga tourist destination aorund the world...


nakakapanghinayang ang mindanao ah. Hindi nagagamit sa tourism. Sana gawin na lang nating tour guide ang mga abu sayyaf para di na mangidnap
:lol:

Saan yan? Di ko pa narinig yan... So meron pero hahanapin pa, in short hindi lantaran... So sa ngayon, ang ibig kong sabihin, meron pero hindi lantaran or konti lang...

It's in KL, BB (Bukit Bintang) is a popular area in KL....ah, you're based in Penang pala....

Naku! ba't ka tumawa? You mean natutuwa ka dahil may nakita kang skwater sa bansang to?
It's a bad attitude dude...
Nakaka lungkot naman, may guts pa tayong tumawa, pareho lang naman, third world country ang mga bansang to...:ohno:

Pero so far wala akong nakikitang skwaters from KL to Penang... Duno sa mga bundok, meron siguro pero infairness, maganda dito... Pero yun nga lang marumi per maganda:) ... Sunod na puntahan ko ang Perinthian island sa South China Sea banda... But ofcourse mas maganda pa kaya ang Cebu at ang Pilipinas may skwater o wala...

Natawa kami kasi ang yabang yabang nila manglait ng Pilipinas pero sa kanila meron din palang skwater na kasinglala sa Pinas. Gets? Chill out dude.

^^eh yun naman pala eh, maydahlan... ba't di mo kinumpleto... di kaya ako manghuhula kung may karugtong o wala...huh! lol...

pero malas mo naman, walang magandang nagyari sayo lahat sa pag punta mo sa KK... malas ka nga, sayang lang ang pera mo, sana binili mo yun ng tinapa y :lol:

Tourist volume rises slightly in January-May
VISITORS TO the country’s key tourist destinations rose 5.37% to 3.65 million in the five months to May from the same period in 2009, the Department of Tourism said in a press release yesterday.

Foreign tourists increased 12.81%, while domestic tourists grew by a slower 2.12%.

Metro Manila was the leading destination, accounting for 23.3% of the total with 848,518 tourists staying in accommodation facilities. That volume was up 17% year on year.

The East Asian market, composed of China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, was the metropolis’ major source of tourists, accounting for 41.78% of total visitors.

Local residents from other regions visiting Metro Manila for tourism-related purposes and staying in hotels and similar facilities made up 35.4%.

Tourist count in Cebu grew 4.34% to 734,531 visitors, accounting for a fifth of the total for that period.

South Korea and Japan were the leading source markets for Cebu, accounting for 30% and 21%, respectively, of total foreign visitors to that province.

Tourists visiting Boracay Island rose 12.15%, with foreign visitors growing 26% against 6% for local tourists.

Seven destinations in the Central Philippines Super Region (Boracay, Bohol, Camarines Sur, Camiguin, Cebu, Negros Oriental and Puerto Princesa), as well as Metro Manila and Tagaytay City, recorded a total of 2,343 tourist accommodation facilities that provided 65,052 rooms.

The select destinations in the Central Philippines Super Region accounted for 60% of total rooms, while Metro Manila and Tagaytay City accounted for 37% and 3%, respectively.

http://www.bworldonline.com/webpics/articles/image/e3graph_062910.jpg
http://www.bworldonline.com/main/content.php?id=13358

Actually bihirang bihira ang squatters sa malaysia. Kung kukumpera mo sa Metro Manila. Swallow the pride and fix the problem.

Actually bihirang bihira ang squatters sa malaysia. Kung kukumpera mo sa Metro Manila. Swallow the pride and fix the problem.

proud nga kami sa squatter eh:D, dadami pa yan, dito sa makati, libre:D toinks

Actually bihirang bihira ang squatters sa malaysia. Kung kukumpera mo sa Metro Manila. Swallow the pride and fix the problem.

You're right but I think nag react lang si rain kasi sinabi ni slemarken na "wala". Wala siguro siyang nakita pero ako may nakita sa KL, di nga lang ganun kadami compare sa Metro Manila. Dinala pa nga ako ng Malaysian friend ko kung saan sila nakatira, marami nga pero karamihan daw dun mga Indonesian migrants.

You're right but I think nag react lang si rain kasi sinabi ni slemarken na "wala". Wala siguro siyang nakita pero ako may nakita sa KL, di nga lang ganun kadami compare sa Metro Manila. Dinala pa nga ako ng Malaysian friend ko kung saan sila nakatira, marami nga pero karamihan daw dun mga Indonesian migrants.


Slums exist in almost every part of the world. There are slums in Bangkok but alot of foreign tourists visit. Same with Mumbai but India is getting a share of foreign tourists.

HK has some of the grittiest tenement buildings in the world but we get alot of tourists.

Slums exist in almost every part of the world. There are slums in Bangkok but alot of foreign tourists visit. Same with Mumbai but India is getting a share of foreign tourists.

HK has some of the grittiest tenement buildings in the world but we get alot of tourists.

I know...even in New Delhi, their slum is worse than Manila.

Who would expect that Macau has like this? It's in Estrada do Arco
http://i530.photobucket.com/albums/dd350/RonnieR_2008/P1000887.jpg

BTW, ito yung explanation ko about why our country lag behind our neighbors interms of tourism... and as a feeling DOT secretary:D Sana...hehe... Ito ang plano ko...

"SOUTH EAST ASIAN TOURIST CORRIDOR"... vs "PHILIPPINE TOURIST CORRIDOR"[/I]
http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/9307/tourrismcorridor.jpg


Nasaan ang:

1: Banawe rice terraces?
2: Hundred Islands in Pangasinan?
3: Paoay Church in Ilocos Norte?
4: Davao City (may durian sila dun) ?
5: Tagaytay at Taal volcano?
6: Mayon volcano in Bicol?

....At sobrang dami pa. Kung huhukayin mo talaga ang pilipinas, di hamak na mas malaki ang "corridor" natin kumpara sa neighbors natin.

The thing is The Philippines has alot of natural wonders but how will people know if they are not advertised?

Advertising is the key and it's not just on Filipino channels but international cable networks such as BBC, CNN or those Travel and Lifestyle channels.

bakit ba big deal lagi sa Pinoy ang English grammar?
while in fact, Pinoy's don't know the correct Filipino grammar... just as much as English speakers to their own language.

Tama. Madalas mali din yung grammar natin sa Filipino.

Like for example madalas kong makita sa news yung mga tagalog na 'NAKAKALITO' , NAKAKABINGI, NAKAKASILAW'.

It should have been 'nakalilito, nakabibingi, nakasisilaw'. Sorry sa mga kapamilya pero madalas kong makita yan sa mga news item ng channel 2.

Madalas din may mali dun sa news bar nila.

DI Ba, in tagalog conjugation, what you repeat is the root word and not the prefix.?

NAKU OT NA OT.

^^eh yun naman pala eh, maydahlan... ba't di mo kinumpleto... di kaya ako manghuhula kung may karugtong o wala...huh! lol...

pero malas mo naman, walang magandang nagyari sayo lahat sa pag punta mo sa KK... malas ka nga, sayang lang ang pera mo, sana binili mo yun ng tinapa y :lol:

ok lang yun, dumaan naman ako ng Brunei. hehe. nagferry lang ako.

You're right but I think nag react lang si rain kasi sinabi ni slemarken na "wala". Wala siguro siyang nakita pero ako may nakita sa KL, di nga lang ganun kadami compare sa Metro Manila. Dinala pa nga ako ng Malaysian friend ko kung saan sila nakatira, marami nga pero karamihan daw dun mga Indonesian migrants.

Maraming slums sa ibang bansa, pero mas magaling silang magtago. Nakafence at hindi usually kita sa main roads. Yan ang problema sa atin kasi nakabuyangyang sa turista.

Maraming slums sa ibang bansa, pero mas magaling silang magtago. Nakafence at hindi usually kita sa main roads. Yan ang problema sa atin kasi nakabuyangyang sa turista.

hINDI lang yan rain, kahapon nasa manila ako. Naku may mga nakasampay na damit sa mga islands dun sa roxas blvd. sayang di ko nadala cam ko napicturan sana :ohno: Biruin mo sa roxas blvd.:ohno:

hINDI lang yan rain, kahapon nasa manila ako. Naku may mga nakasampay na damit sa mga islands dun sa roxas blvd. sayang di ko nadala cam ko napicturan sana :ohno: Biruin mo sa roxas blvd.:ohno:

Wala na naman yatang ginagawa kasi mga mayors dyan ng Maynila at Pasay. Bawal yan eh, I remember si BF dati nagsabi na huhulihin nya ang mga nagsasampay sa harap ng bahay na malapit sa sidewalk.

Dito naman sa amin, ang mga tao, natutulog sa island yung mga tao, minsan nga may mga barbero pa. 75 pesos ang gupit. :D may upuan sya, gunting, razor, at isang maliit na salamin. LOL

Wala na naman yatang ginagawa kasi mga mayors dyan ng Maynila at Pasay. Bawal yan eh, I remember si BF dati nagsabi na huhulihin nya ang mga nagsasampay sa harap ng bahay na malapit sa sidewalk.

Dito naman sa amin, ang mga tao, natutulog sa island yung mga tao, minsan nga may mga barbero pa. 75 pesos ang gupit. :D may upuan sya, gunting, razor, at isang maliit na salamin. LOL

oo nga, nagpunta kasi ako ng PRC kahapon. Ang daming natutulog na mga tao dun sa may underpass sa may malapit sa FEU. Parang mas lalala pa yata ngayon sa kasalukuyan.

oo nga, nagpunta kasi ako ng PRC kahapon. Ang daming natutulog na mga tao dun sa may underpass sa may malapit sa FEU. Parang mas lalala pa yata ngayon sa kasalukuyan.

Hay naku. Ano ba yan.:ohno::ohno::ohno::ohno:

Maraming slums sa ibang bansa, pero mas magaling silang magtago. Nakafence at hindi usually kita sa main roads. Yan ang problema sa atin kasi nakabuyangyang sa turista.

Sa Jakarta meron din....kahit yung malapit sa CBD nila...Marami din pag pupunta ka sa pier nila, sa mga riles, meron. Sa Bangkok, meron din. Tama nga si Wanch, di lang sa atin ang problema sa squatters but our gov't should carry out their plan to relocate ALL of them.

Tama. Madalas mali din yung grammar natin sa Filipino.

Like for example madalas kong makita sa news yung mga tagalog na 'NAKAKALITO' , NAKAKABINGI, NAKAKASILAW'.

It should have been 'nakalilito, nakabibingi, nakasisilaw'. Sorry sa mga kapamilya pero madalas kong makita yan sa mga news item ng channel 2.

Madalas din may mali dun sa news bar nila.

DI Ba, in tagalog conjugation, what you repeat is the root word and not the prefix.?

NAKU OT NA OT.

When I see it, the average Filipino should know basic Filipino (any dialect) and English.

Sometimes even its wrong, they just speak basic Filipino that other Filipinos can understand. Same with English. The deep Filipino/English vocabulary isn't spoken much.

Sa Jakarta meron din....kahit yung malapit sa CBD nila...Marami din pag pupunta ka sa pier nila, sa mga riles, meron. Sa Bangkok, meron din. Tama nga si Wanch, di lang sa atin ang problema sa squatters but our gov't should carry out their plan to relocate ALL of them.

Even in HK and NY you have tenements near and within CBDs and prime commercial areas.

People especially tourists rarely notice it because they seldom look up when in that area.

Maraming slums sa ibang bansa, pero mas magaling silang magtago. Nakafence at hindi usually kita sa main roads. Yan ang problema sa atin kasi nakabuyangyang sa turista.

In fairness, I see less slums around Metro Manila compared to the late 20th century.

Maybe you guys should write Lim to spruce up the "tourist belt" of Metro Manila because just from there the impression from tourists of Manila will be slums, prostitution and garbage.

It's not entirely true that garbage littered in tourist spots in Manila:

Places of interest or where the tourists go:

1. Intramuros: clean
2. Malate: sidewalks are generally clean.
3. Roxas Boulevard: clean except the presence of peddlers at Baywalk
4. Ermita/Robinsons: clean except the presence of few beggars
5. Binondo/Chinatown: generally okay except the area of Sta. Cruz where you see garbage or street vendors.

Makati tourist areas: clean, pleasant

QC tourist areas: clean, interesting

Pasig/Ortigas: clean, interesting, many hot spots

Pasay Roxas Boulevard: fairly okay, except the presence of few homeless people.

Malls and surrounding areas: generally okay and safe.

It's not entirely true that garbage littered in tourist spots in Manila:

Places of interest or where the tourists go:

1. Intramuros: clean
2. Malate: sidewalks are generally clean.
3. Roxas Boulevard: clean except the presence of peddlers at Baywalk
4. Ermita/Robinsons: clean except the presence of few beggars
5. Binondo/Chinatown: generally okay except the area of Sta. Cruz where you see garbage or street vendors.

Makati tourist areas: clean, pleasant

QC tourist areas: clean, interesting

Pasig/Ortigas: clean, interesting, many hot spots

Pasay Roxas Boulevard: fairly okay, except the presence of few homeless people.

Malls and surrounding areas: generally okay and safe.

Malate and Ermita has alot of beggars plus scammers. But is becoming a backpackers haven similar to BKK's Khao San Rd.

Makati is generally friendly and safe but expensive. A few beggars but not annoying. The Burgos area though is reasonable.

Makati, Ortigas and Manila are suitable for walking and are pedestrian oriented.

On the other hand, Quezon City is not friendly for pedestrians except a few areas like Cubao. You need a car to get into QC's places to visit say Libis or La Mesa Eco Park. One the other hand, some parts of Tomas Morato have been replanned to separate both pedestrians and cars.

That is why most foreign tourists seldom venture to QC, Camanava and the eastern parts of Metro Manila unless boarding a bus heading to the provinces say Sagada.

Malate and Ermita has alot of beggars plus scammers. But is becoming a backpackers haven similar to BKK's Khao San Rd.

Makati is generally friendly and safe but expensive. A few beggars but not annoying. The Burgos area though is reasonable.

Makati, Ortigas and Manila are suitable for walking and is pedestrian oriented.

On the other hand, Quezon City is not friendly for pedestrians except a few areas like Cubao. You need a car to get into QC's places to visit say Libis or La Mesa Eco Park. Same with some parts of Pasig.

There are no beggars in Makati except in Buendia corner Makati Avenue, near DBP. They number not more than 10 people....I think they are part of the syndicate with those babies. I heard them talking like Maranao or Mindanaoan tribe (Badjao).

At the Makati Ave burgos area, there are beggars too. I guess you can't avoid that but they should at least teach them not to be too aggresive. They go up to your window and won't leave you alone.

There are no beggars in Makati except in Buendia corner Makati Avenue, near DBP. They number not more than 10 people....I think they are part of the syndicate with those babies. I heard them talking like Maranao or Mindanaoan tribe (Badjao).

They don't bother that much unlike those in Manila. Anyway, Badjaos are better off at sea than begging on urban land.

In short, its Filipinos themselves who are bringing negative images on their country. Especially those abroad.

Yep, very true. I've witnessed these way too much when I hear some pinoys talk about their own country to non filipinos.

Yep, very true. I've witnessed these way too much when I hear some pinoys talk about their own country to non filipinos.

That is why Filipinos who love their own country should intervene upon hearing such conversations.

This is the duty of a true Filipino, to stop their own countrymen from badmouthing their own homeland.

That is why Filipinos who love their own country should intervene upon hearing such conversations.

This is the duty of a true Filipino, to stop their own countrymen from badmouthing their own homeland.

Tama.:cheers:

Anyway, Badjaos are better off at sea than begging on urban land.

The Philippine Olympic Committee should train them to become future divers and swimmers of our Olympic team :D

Ako na ang pinagagawa mo ng trabaho ng DOT dahil kulang ang effort nila, diba? diba?

well... each Filipino has the duty to promote the country... bilang Pinoy... di mo kelangan maging empleyado ng DOT... actually lahat tayo may duty sa bansa... di kelangan na empleyado ng gobyerno..

That is why Filipinos who love their own country should intervene upon hearing such conversations.

This is the duty of a true Filipino, to stop their own countrymen from badmouthing their own homeland.

tama ka dyan wanch!

tama ka dyan wanch!

And to think these people are part of the so-called bagong bayani.

Anyway, alot of people I know in HK who travel in Manila prefer Makati as their choice for a place to stay whether they are expats or locals. I'm talking about leisure travelers not business ones.

Its because Makati is clean, less the problems of Ermita/Malate and like I said before, pedestrian oriented. Plus there are affordable hotels within the Burgos area.

There are no beggars in Makati except in Buendia corner Makati Avenue, near DBP. They number not more than 10 people....I think they are part of the syndicate with those babies. I heard them talking like Maranao or Mindanaoan tribe (Badjao).

meron din along ayala ave. yung mga matatanda. i see them everyday.

That table is not complete. I wonder why DOT's statistics for 2009 is not yet out, or at least posted in government websites such as NSCB and NSO.

The table above is only for the first half of the year. Plus, the numbers for foreign and domestic tourism are merged. It used to be separate. :ohno:

The only thing I know about tourism last year is that foreign arrivals hit 3M, same as in 2008.

http://thepinoy.net/?p=4516

are they still counting returning residents as foreign tourists?

^^ if they hold different passport. pero kung philippine passport eh hindi sya counted.

Most Asians plan travel, vacation (http://www.tribuneonline.org/business/20100629bus7.html)

06/29/2010

One in four consumers in Asia-Pacific is looking to pack his or her bags and head off for a vacation in the next six months, based on the latest findings from a MasterCard survey. Japan, Australia and China remain the most popular destinations for travelers in Asia-Pacific.

A rebound in spending on travel is also expected in the Middle East, with more than a third of consumers planning to spend on international personal travel in the next six months (similar to a year ago). In the last survey, only 24 percent of consumers were looking at planning a trip.

The latest survey was conducted from March 15, to April 12, and involved 10,503 consumers from 24 markets. Data collection was via Internet surveys, personal, telephone and computer aided telephone interviews, with the questionnaire translated to the local language wherever appropriate and necessary. The index and its accompanying reports do not represent MasterCard financial performance.

Intraregional travel continues to be popular among consumers who plan to spend on travel in the next six months in Asia-Pacific (86 percent) and the Middle East (57 percent), with the majority of them planning trips within their respective regions in the next six months. Consumers in Africa who plan to spend on travel in the next six months however prefer to travel to Europe (65 percent), rather than within Africa itself (19 percent).

Of the 24 markets surveyed, respondents in Kuwait (71 percent) topped the list of consumers planning trips abroad, followed by Hong Kong (56 percent), UAE (52 percent), Singapore (48 percent) and New Zealand (40 percent).

meron din along ayala ave. yung mga matatanda. i see them everyday.

ay yung 2 o 3 ale na laging nakapostura at may magandang bag pa minsan.. na nanghihingi ng pamasahe... dun sa kanto ng ayala at paseo?.... hehehe oo regular nga sila dun

^^ sa Bangkok at Jakarta din may mga pulubi....

^^ sa Bangkok at Jakarta din may mga pulubi....

Beggars are in every part of the world even in HK. Its one of the world's oldest "professions"

You're right but I think nag react lang si rain kasi sinabi ni slemarken na "wala". Wala siguro siyang nakita pero ako may nakita sa KL, di nga lang ganun kadami compare sa Metro Manila. Dinala pa nga ako ng Malaysian friend ko kung saan sila nakatira, marami nga pero karamihan daw dun mga Indonesian migrants.

eh wala kase akong nakitang barong barong dito eh... Kung meron ba eh bat ko itatago, naghahanap nga ako para masabi ko na hindi malayo ang agwat ng Pilipinas at Malaysia... Di ko pa kase nalibot ang KL, sa Penang, Central at Northern Malaysia lang ako naka libot... Siguro yung condominium na marumi, squatters siguro yun kase marumi yung building... Sana nga dahil feeling nila mayayaman na sila:bash:
nababaitan ako sa kanila sa pakikitungo pero pag umasta parang sosyal, eh di naman sosyal tignan, maiitim naman...lol. Isa yan ang di ko gusto sa kanila, mga FEELERS...:bash:
Kaya nga nag hahanap para ma picturan ko kaagad... Yng mga bahay na nakita ko na maliliit, maayos naman ang pagka tayo, may grahe pa...Pero yung light materials na bahay, wala eh...
Apartments ang halos lahat ng mga bahay dito...
From KL to Penang, wala kang makikitang bahay o establishments, puro plantation ng palm oil ang makikita mo... Napaka ganda ng hi-ways nila... parang nasa US...

Binase ko yan sa nakikita ko...
@Sir Ron, pasensya na... sinabihan mo na ako minsan na minamaliit ko ang Pilipinas dahil naka punta lang ng ibang bansa... it's up to you...

Nasaan ang:

1: Banawe rice terraces?
2: Hundred Islands in Pangasinan?
3: Paoay Church in Ilocos Norte?
4: Davao City (may durian sila dun) ?
5: Tagaytay at Taal volcano?
6: Mayon volcano in Bicol?

....At sobrang dami pa. Kung huhukayin mo talaga ang pilipinas, di hamak na mas malaki ang "corridor" natin kumpara sa neighbors natin.

yan lang muna bro... wag sabay sabay... mas madaling pasikatin ang walong talents kaysa 20 talents...
Kung yung walong destinations na yun ay sikat na, it will create a Domino effect naman... Referals na yan ng mga locals sa mga tourists... gaya dito, dami nilang inirerefer na mga tourist spots kaya nga 2 times a month kaming nag totourist mode dito...

The thing is The Philippines has alot of natural wonders but how will people know if they are not advertised?

Advertising is the key and it's not just on Filipino channels but international cable networks such as BBC, CNN or those Travel and Lifestyle channels.

right... Information through advertising kase ang kailangan ng mga turista about sa destination na pupuntahan nila... Less information of a particular destination, hesitant sila nyan.

Nakapag advertize si Gordon noon sa cable, ibig sabihin we can afford... iba lang kase ang strategy ni durano, iniisa isa nya ang mga Bansa in a few places sa bansang yun, konti lang ang makaka alam whereas pag sa cable, expect buong Asia na yan of not buong mundo ang mabibigyan ng impormasyon about sa nakikita nila sa Pilipinas...

nababaitan ako sa kanila sa pakikitungo pero pag umasta parang sosyal, eh di naman sosyal tignan, maiitim naman...lol. Isa yan ang di ko gusto sa kanila, mga FEELERS...:bash:


You mean darker people don't have the right to feel sosyal. :lol:
of course they will be dark or brown ,they're Malay. If anything dapat silang pasalamatan at tinaas nila ang bandera ng "brown people" not all brown people should be poor. that's the problem with filipino mentality that has to be changed or they'll be stuck in a rut forever ,

^^ I agree!
IMO...Concentrate all forces to one area, say for example CEBU,
after this area is fully developed then move to the next area!!!



:horse:

That is why Filipinos who love their own country should intervene upon hearing such conversations.

This is the duty of a true Filipino, to stop their own countrymen from badmouthing their own homeland.

well... each Filipino has the duty to promote the country... bilang Pinoy... di mo kelangan maging empleyado ng DOT... actually lahat tayo may duty sa bansa... di kelangan na empleyado ng gobyerno..


exactly, that's what Im doing bro...
Kahit 100% ang effort nila, I will do the same...

Di ko naman sinabi na sana mag effort ang DOT para wala na akong gagawin...
Ang pinag uusapan natin ay ang effort ng government... about sa pag promote ko ng bansa natin, ibang usapan na yun dahil natural na sa bibig ko na babggitin ang Pilipinas pag kausap ko ay turista...
Let's focus on our Governments effort... I really want Gordon na maging DOT secretary ulit... He is much better than Durano... Nakikita ko talaga ang effort ni Gordon sa tourism natin, nag dedemand pa ng budget... Unlike ni Durano, wala :bash:

Si Gordon nagpasikat ng WOW Philippines... May initiative talaga siya, siya ang nag bigay ng brand ng Philippine Tourism... Much better than Amazing Thailand, Incredible India, Malaysia Truly Asia... puro pur words lang unlike WOW na maraming meaning or kung sa picture pa, abstract ang dating...

Wealth Of Wonders Philippines, Beyond the Usual.

SAYANG talaga.. Sa Durano administration, wala talaga akong matandaan na kahit single word na makapagpa alala ng turista about sa Pilipinas... :ohno:




Di ko gustong maging impleyado ng DOT bro pero gusto kong maging DOT secretary pag swertihin.


Di nyo ba nakikita to? Bat binasura na io ngayon ng DOT?
This video IMO will create an impact to the Philippines as a BRAND in tourism world... Sayang talaga to...
TsBUz6qu_Bo&feature=related

F7nRoE5lq1E&feature=related


VERY CATCHY VIDEOS... air this back in CNN, BBC, Discivery etc...!

Ang pinakapaborito ko sa lahat, More than the usual Fastfood... and more than the usual Rush Hour... ngingiti ka talaga sa ganda...:rock:
YdBANriBrlw&feature=related
A Philippine Dept. of Tourism commercial that was a part of the campaign to bring more awareness of the Philippines as a tourist destination.

Binase ko yan sa nakikita ko...
@Sir Ron, pasensya na... sinabihan mo na ako minsan na minamaliit ko ang Pilipinas dahil naka punta lang ng ibang bansa... it's up to you...

wala na yun. :)

Nakita ko ang mga squatters sa may Petaling Jaya. Sabi ng friend ko na Malaysian, meron din sa Klang, Ampang. Nahiya naman kasing kunan kasi nasa sasakyan kami at ako ang nagtanong kung saan ba ang mga IS dun.....pero maganda ang programa nila, zero squatter policy talaga. I hope it can be implemented here....

You mean darker people don't have the right to feel sosyal. :lol:
of course they will be dark or brown ,they're Malay. If anything dapat silang pasalamatan at tinaas nila ang bandera ng "brown people" not all brown people should be poor. that's the problem with filipino mentality that has to be changed or they'll be stuck in a rut forever ,

It's not about the color... it's about the way they act... taas noo palagi ba... pero as what I've said, mababait naman sila... I just don't like the way na masyado nilang minamaliit ang Indonesians... Pero treatment nila sa Pinoy, ok naman, mataas pa nga tingin nila sa atin e... magagandat gwapo daw tayo...
magagaling daw din kumanta... Infairness sa pinagtratrabahoan ko, kalevel ng mga Malaysians at Chinese ang Pinoy sa rank, under namin yung mga Indonesians, Vietnamese, Burmese, Nepal...

sa kulay, tira ko lang yun sa kanila sa mga di magagandang asal nila against their neighbors....

wala na yun. :)

Nakita ko ang mga squatters sa may Petaling Jaya. Sabi ng friend ko na Malaysian, meron din sa Klang, Ampang. Nahiya naman kasing kunan kasi nasa sasakyan kami at ako ang nagtanong kung saan ba ang mga IS dun.....pero maganda ang programa nila, zero squatter policy talaga. I hope it can be implemented here....

kararating lang ngayon yung mga kasamahan ko galing Langkawi, tinanong ko ulit kung may nakita ba talaga silang skwater dito, e wala din daw... Siguro daw meron sa ibang lugar... Halos may kaya lahat ng taga Penang, kaya siguro... wala akong co worker na Malay na walang sasakyan, magugulat ka lang na kahit taga hugas ng plato sa canteen na bungisngisin pa, may sasakyan pala... dahil din yan mura ang gasolina dito at may proton Cars sila na Malaysian brand...

Korea and the Philippines are true lovers

By ******* Ebron

When it comes to the Philippines, Koreans almost always think of the country's staunch support of their country during the 1950-53 Korean War, and the 60-year long-standing relations between the two countries that have lately crystallized in the rush of Koreans to the Philippines in search of rich and exotic tourism experiences.

The new campaign ``My♡Philippines" launched recently by the Philippine Department of Tourism aims at putting the relations between the two countries to the level of true lovers. Especially with Koreans falling in love with the exotic destination.

Honeymooners and beach vacationers will fall in love with the jewel-like oceans of Boracay and Palawan. Golfers can't even imagine what it's like to tee off into the Pacific. Children can benefit from the English-speaking environment.

And the entire family can enjoy retirement without a huge financial burden. These are just a few of the qualities that will bring people back to the Philippines. Through the campaign Koreans will be shown the best of the Philippines.

For the past four years, Korea has been the Philippines' top source of tourist traffic with an average of over 600,000 Korean tourists visiting annually. With 7,107 islands the Philippines is a beloved exotic vacation destination where vacationers can enjoy various marine activities and spectacular sights and foods.

An additional attraction is the fact that low-cost airlines are serving the two countries. In recent years, exchange students have flocked to the Philippines to take advantage of the low-cost American-based well-structured educational system.

The room capacity in key Philippine tourist destinations for the first quarter of 2009 expanded with the opening of new hotels and resorts. Last year a total of 1,231 additional rooms opened in the Philippines. The 616-room Imperial Palace Water Park Resort and Spa opened and increased the room supply in Cebu by 4 percent to 14,792.

The San Remigo Beach Club in the northern part of Cebu also opened its new facilities, including a convention facility to capture the MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and events) market, both international and domestic.

Shangri-la's Boracay Resort and Spa, a high-end 217-room resort on Boracay Island, opened just in time for the influx of tourists on vacation. Seven locators investing in 28 cluster villas in the Amanpulo Tourism Enterprise Zone in Palawan also began their operations during the first quarter last year.

In Metro Manila, the opening of the Legend International's Park, Bed and Breakfast Hotel, Eurotel Hotel Branch in Makati, and the expansion of Oakwood Serviced Residences increased the total room supply by 320. Early this year, some 1,946 people will be directly employed nationwide with the additional 2,315 rooms in the following destinations: Metro Manila, Cebu, Boracay, Puerto Princesa, Tagaytay and Albay.

A $200 million luxury spa and resort is also set to be developed by Banyan Tree in a 55-hectare property on Diwaran Island, Palawan. Cebu remains the most frequently visited destination for foreign tourists, followed by Boracay, Bohol, Camarines Sur, Palawan, Baguio and the Metro Manila environs.

In 2009 the government threw its full weight behind the sector, declaring tourism to be the main engine of investment, employment and growth.

We want the approximately 7.5 million Koreans who have been to the Philippines, to come back with their friends and families. We are certain that 98 percent if not a 100 percent of those Koreans who visited the Philippines can say ``My Philippines."

******* Basco-Ebron is the tourism attache at the Embassy of the Philippines and concurrently director of Philippine Department of Tourism Office in Korea.
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/opinon/2010/06/137_68459.html

^^I'm not impresed of that kind of promotion...huh! :D

^^I'm not impresed of that kind of promotion...huh! :D

ako din. kadiri ng nagsulat nyan. yuuuck

yung sec ng tourism....kapatid yun ni che che lazaro....narinig ko sya sa anc...mukhang babaguhin na naman ang marketing ng pinas.....nde na tayo makalayo bawat palit ng iupo...palit din ng konsepto...they should just build on existing campaign.....

Ang resulta nalilito tuloy ang mga turista kung ano ba talaga hahaha.

wala na yun. :)

Nakita ko ang mga squatters sa may Petaling Jaya. Sabi ng friend ko na Malaysian, meron din sa Klang, Ampang. Nahiya naman kasing kunan kasi nasa sasakyan kami at ako ang nagtanong kung saan ba ang mga IS dun.....pero maganda ang programa nila, zero squatter policy talaga. I hope it can be implemented here....

kararating lang ngayon yung mga kasamahan ko galing Langkawi, tinanong ko ulit kung may nakita ba talaga silang skwater dito, e wala din daw... Siguro daw meron sa ibang lugar... Halos may kaya lahat ng taga Penang, kaya siguro... wala akong co worker na Malay na walang sasakyan, magugulat ka lang na kahit taga hugas ng plato sa canteen na bungisngisin pa, may sasakyan pala... dahil din yan mura ang gasolina dito at may proton Cars sila na Malaysian brand...

sundan sana natin ginawa ng Malaysia.

RIVER
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros



WHITE WATER RAFTING
AND
RAPPELLING
AT
ILOG RIVER
Mabinay, Negros Oriental


It is not just caves that are drawing tourists to Mabinay, but also the 12-kilometer long Ilog River that has become a favorite venue for kayaking enthusiasts both foreign and local. The usual starting point is near Bugsok Falls with a hot spring, further down kayakers can find relief and appreciate the lush beauty of virgin forests adjoining the river before reaching the end point at Kauswagan Bridge where they can indulge in rappelling.


http://www.negroschronicle.com/images/may_17_09/Kayaking%20in%20Mabinay’s%20Ilog%20River.jpg

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/1553/80794743.jpghttp://img341.imageshack.us/img341/7522/99330785.jpg
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85FEaxrRFnc



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SPRING
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros




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Mabinay Spring
Mabinay, Negros Oriental

Aside from being the Cave Capital of the Philippines with its dozens of caves, Mabinay also boasts of natural spring with its crystal-clear & icy-cool waters, resembling a giant swimming pool, its natural habitat remained untouched for centuries. Local folks consider this as their greatest treasure, a gift from nature, with its unlimited water supply even on long dry spell. A very typical hide away for nature lovers, campers & motorist to drive-thru taking a stretch from a long drive, under shades of towering centuries-old native tree, sprawling the perimeters of this natural spring.

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photos by:
luis llanera, fai, cyberdaux, sassieboy, francisb, jingy


Click Here to View the Different Tourist Spots of Negros Oriental
Visit and Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=980898)

WATERFALLS
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negroshttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3094/2800822431_06700628d2_b.jpg

PULANGBATO FALLS
Valencia, Negros Oriental


Pulangbato Falls is located in the Ocoy Valley in the town of Valencia Negros Oriental. It is aptly named so because of the waterfall’s seemingly red river water which is caused by the presence of natural reddish rocks found in the area. Pula is the native word for red while bato, for rock. Thus, if interpreted, the name would be red rock.

Like many other waterfalls, swimming lagoons and pools in the town of Valencia, Pulangbato Falls is blessed with calm and refreshing waters. This is mainly because of Valencia’s geography – 60% of its land composition being hilly and mountainous – that the climatic temperature is always moderate to cool.

Pulangbato Falls has a wide cascade. The water pours down into a swimming hole that is also deep enough for high dives. Enthusiasts clamber up to a nearby rock that functions as a diving point and free fall into the water basin. The shape of Pulangbato Falls has been considered unique because of its layered structure. At the first tier, the cascade begins narrowly and widens progressively as it moves down the next levels. At a distance, the waterfalls look triangular in shape.

It is also the color of the water in Pulangbato Falls that makes it more special. It appears to be red but quickly turns clear once taken out from the river. It must be only a reflection of the red rock formations that make up most of the landscape. Surrounding the waterfall is thick foliage of wild plants and vegetation coupled with some trees. The ambience is rather calming in an unsophisticated kind of way because of the impression of being far from civilization.

Except for the presence of some makeshift huts and small stores selling light snacks and candies, Pulangbato Falls is otherwise a non-commercialized area which is good because the serenity is preserved. This can also prevent the inevitable effects of tourism like garbage and pollution.

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photos by:
betterthanezrah, scalpel master, revenui

text from:
dumagueteinfo





Click Here to View the Different Tourist Spots of Negros Oriental
Visit and Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=980898)

BEACH
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros

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FUNTASEA BEACH RESORT
Basay, Negros Oriental

Basay is the southernmost town of the province of Negros Oriental. It is a coastal barangay and known as the Fishing Capital of Negros Oriental. Aside from the bountiful harvest at sea, Basay also prides itself with its pristine white sand beach. Unlike the beaches of the most part of Negros island which is vulcanic in nature, this town has a white sand coastline. Basay holds a lot of potential for tourism and is just waiting to be fully developed.

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Click Here to View the Different Tourist Spots of Negros Oriental
Visit and Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=980898)

DiCaprio here in August (http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=589251&publicationSubCategoryId=70)

http://images.askmen.com/galleries/men/leonardo-dicaprio/pictures/leonardo-dicaprio-picture-3.jpg

MORE BREAKING NEWS: Leonardo DiCaprio is coming for a visit early next month. This piece of good news was confirmed by DiCaprio himself through his Hollywood agents and publicists.

According to earlier reports, DiCaprio was arriving in early 2011.

“It turned out that he’s arriving earlier than expected,” said Joyce Ramirez, director for International Publicity at PR Asis Worldwide, who invited DiCaprio not to promote his new movie, Inception, but to spearhead an environmental-awareness project in cooperation with a huge conglomerate in Albay. “DiCaprio will be here for one week. He has chosen to stay at the Misibis Bay, an ultra-luxurious resort. It’s not yet sure if he will make a stopover in Manila or fly straight to Legazpi City on a private jet.”

It’s Joyce’s brainchild to bring DiCaprio to the Philippines to help boost our tourism industry especially in Albay, with Legazpi City as a world-class eco-tourism destination.

It’s not DiCaprio’s first trip to Asia. After starring in the all-time hit Titanic, DiCaprio went to Thailand to shoot The Beach, his follow-up starrer. The STAR did an exclusive interview with DiCaprio in L.A. for that movie in late 1999.

In Inception, a sci-fi action adventure distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures in IMAX, Digital 2D and regular format, DiCaprio plays Dom Cobb, a skilled thief who is an expert in the dangerous art of extraction, stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious during the dream state when the mind is at its most vulnerable. Cobb’s rare ability has made him a coveted player in the treacherous new game of corporate espionage, but it has also made him an international fugitive and cost him everything he has ever loved.

Inception is showing nationwide soon.

Tourism department cites bird-watching as promising thrust
http://www.bworldonline.com/webpics/articles/image/20100630c6df8.jpg

BIRD-WATCHING could serve as a specialized thrust in the government’s effort to boost the number of foreign visitors in the country.
US-Based Avian experts (from left) Gavin Bieber, senior field leader of Wings Birding Tours; Richard Webster, senior field leader of Field Guides; and Hector Gomez de Silva Graza, general manager of Eagle-Eye Tours spot an endemic bird along Nabasan Trail in Subic Bay Freeport and Special Economic Zone, in this photo provided by the Tourism department.
US-Based Avian experts (from left) Gavin Bieber, senior field leader of Wings Birding Tours; Richard Webster, senior field leader of Field Guides; and Hector Gomez de Silva Graza, general manager of Eagle-Eye Tours spot an endemic bird along Nabasan Trail in Subic Bay Freeport and Special Economic Zone, in this photo provided by the Tourism department.

In a statement last Tuesday, the Department of Tourism (DoT) said it has teamed up with the Philippine Convention and Visitors Corp. (PCVC) to invite the bird watchers to tour the country’s avian sanctuaries like Mt. Makiling Forest Reserve in Laguna; the Nabasan Trail in Subic Bay Freeport and Special Economic Zone; Villa Escudero in Quezon; Chocolate Hills, Rajah Sikatuna Protected Landscape and Tarsier and Wildlife Sanctuary in Bohol; Olango Island Wildlife Sanctuary and Tabunan Forest in Cebu; as well as Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, Sabang Beach, Mangrove Forest and Lion’s Cave in Palawan.

The effort resulted in a recent visit by top executives of some of the United States’ major bird-watching tour operators. The party was composed of Richard Webster, senior field leader of Field Guides; Gavin Bieber, senior field leader of Wings Birding Tours; David Wolf, co-founder and director of Victor Emanuel Nature Tours (VENT); Robert Schutsky, owner and operator of Bird Treks; Simon Thompson, president and owner of Venture Birding Tours; Adrian Binns, senior leader of Wildside Nature Tours; Hector Gomez de Silva Graza, general manager of Eagle-Eye Tours; Ana Daza, general manager of Tropical Birding Tours; William Robert Maynard, editor of Winging It; and Melvin White, travel writer of National Geo Traveler and Living Bird Magazine.

Among others, the group cited rare sightings of the Indigo-Banded Kingfisher and Pygmy Flowerpecker in the areas they visited.

"While birding in the Philippines is still a challenge, seeing around 309 exotic species in 10 days is indeed remarkable," the DoT statement quoted Mr. Webster of Field Guides as saying.

It added that VENT’s Mr. Wolf even found spots in Metro Manila itself, particularly Palay-Palay Mangrove Reserve in Mall of Asia and the University of the Philippines Diliman campus.

The party suggested the months of January-March as the best time to bring foreign bird watchers to the country due to the generally pleasant weather in that period.

"We hope that bird-watching will be sustained and further developed... with the groundwork already laid down and the market secured," said former Tourism Secretary Joseph "Ace" H. Durano, who was succeeded yesterday by Alberto A. Lim at the helm of the department under the newly installed administration of President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III.

Speaking before Mr. Aquino’s inauguration yesterday noontime as the country’s 15th president, Mr. Lim said only that he would immediately focus on improving tourism infrastructure and products. The newly inaugurated president has directed his Cabinet men to review existing programs and targets of their respective departments.

The DoT statement cited a study, "Birding in the United States: A Demographic and Economics Analysis," as estimating that there are about 18 million bird watchers in the US alone and that bird-watching is becoming one of the world’s fastest-growing recreational activities.

This, plus the fact that 200, or about a third, of the bird species in the Philippines are endemic, had prompted the department to target this high-income tourism segment.

"Bird-watching is admittedly in its fledgling stage in the country; that’s why we enjoin our partner stakeholders to support one of our biggest tourism revenue generators," the statement quoted Tourism Undersecretary Eduardo Jarque, Jr. as saying.

Bird-watching teams usually travel in groups of 10 persons, stay for 18-23 days and spend about $6,000-7,000, excluding airfare, Mr. Jarque noted.

The same statement quoted DoT North America Team Head Corazon Jorda-Apo as saying that "part of the long-term strategy of the DoT for bird-watching includes intensive manpower training for local bird guides and forest rangers."

"At present, we are in the process of selecting top seven birding destinations which will be the focus of product development and marketing efforts," she said.http://www.bworldonline.com/main/content.php?id=13481
|

;59584443']DiCaprio here in August (http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=589251&publicationSubCategoryId=70)

http://images.askmen.com/galleries/men/leonardo-dicaprio/pictures/leonardo-dicaprio-picture-3.jpg

MORE BREAKING NEWS: Leonardo DiCaprio is coming for a visit early next month. This piece of good news was confirmed by DiCaprio himself through his Hollywood agents and publicists.

According to earlier reports, DiCaprio was arriving in early 2011.

“It turned out that he’s arriving earlier than expected,” said Joyce Ramirez, director for International Publicity at PR Asis Worldwide, who invited DiCaprio not to promote his new movie, Inception, but to spearhead an environmental-awareness project in cooperation with a huge conglomerate in Albay. “DiCaprio will be here for one week. He has chosen to stay at the Misibis Bay, an ultra-luxurious resort. It’s not yet sure if he will make a stopover in Manila or fly straight to Legazpi City on a private jet.”

It’s Joyce’s brainchild to bring DiCaprio to the Philippines to help boost our tourism industry especially in Albay, with Legazpi City as a world-class eco-tourism destination.

It’s not DiCaprio’s first trip to Asia. After starring in the all-time hit Titanic, DiCaprio went to Thailand to shoot The Beach, his follow-up starrer. The STAR did an exclusive interview with DiCaprio in L.A. for that movie in late 1999.

In Inception, a sci-fi action adventure distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures in IMAX, Digital 2D and regular format, DiCaprio plays Dom Cobb, a skilled thief who is an expert in the dangerous art of extraction, stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious during the dream state when the mind is at its most vulnerable. Cobb’s rare ability has made him a coveted player in the treacherous new game of corporate espionage, but it has also made him an international fugitive and cost him everything he has ever loved.

Inception is showing nationwide soon.


Someone should remind Leo that The Beach was inspired by El Nido and Boracay.

Top US bird watching operators rate RP ‘excellent’
Posted on June 30th, 2010 under Beauty of the Philippines
By Lynda B. Valencia


The ‘Big 3’ birdwatching tour operators from the United States (US) recently rated the country ‘excellent’ as a birdwatching destination for its variety of endemic birds and accessible trails.
Wings Birding Tours, VENT (Victor Emmanuel Nature Tours) and Field Guides are considered the top three birdwatching tour specialists in the US.
The Department of Tourism (DOT) together with the Philippine Convention and Visitors Corporation (PCVC) invited the birding operators to the country’s popular aviary sanctuaries which included Mt. Makiling Forest Reserve in Laguna; the Nabasan Trail in Subic; Villa Escudero in Quezon; Chocolate Hills, Rajah Sikatuna Protected Landscape and Tarsier and Wildlife Sanctuary in Bohol; Olango Island Wildlife Sanctuary and Tabunan Forest in Cebu; Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, Sabang Beach, Mangrove Forest and Lion’s Cave in Palawan.
The 10-man group of hardcore bird enthusiasts mentioned rare sightings of the Indigo-Banded Kingfisher and Pygmy Flowerpicker in the areas they visited.
The entire party was composed of Richard Webster, Senior Field Guides Leader of Field Guides; Gavin Bieber, Senior Field Leader of Wings Birding Tours; David Wolf, Co-founder and Director of VENT (Victor Emmanuel Nature Tours); Robert Schutsky, Owner and Operator of Bird Treks; Simon Thompson; President/Owner of Venture Birding Tours; Adrian Binns, Senior Leader of Wildside Nature Tours; Hector Gomez de Silva Graza, General Manager of Eagle-Eye Tours; Ana Daza, General Manager of Tropical Birding Tours, William Robert Maynard, Editor of Winging It; and Melvin White, Travel Writer of National Geo Traveler and Living Bird Magazine.
“While birding in the Philippines is still a challenge, seeing around 309 exotic species in 10 days is indeed remarkable,” said Webster of Field Guides.
Wolf was impressed to discover, on his own, exceptional spots in Metro Manila itself, such as Palay-Palay Mangrove Reserve in Mall of Asia and the University of the Philippines Diliman campus.
Bieber said that the transportation and road networks leading to the sanctuaries were of “high quality, making their travel easier.”
“We hope that birdwatching will be sustained and further developed by the incoming administration with the groundwork already laid down and the market secured,” said Tourism Secretary Ace Durano.
According to the study, Birding in the United States: A Demographic and Economics Analysis, there are an estimated 18 million birdwatchers in the US alone, with birdwatching becoming one of the world’s fastest growing recreational activities.
In view of the fact that one-third or 200 of the bird species in the Philippines is endemic, birdwatching has been launched by the DOT to boost arrivals from a high-income tourism segment.
Durano added that, “Apart from the significant exposure and promotion we could gain, these familiarization tours allow us obtain valuable insight from comprehensive assessments submitted by these field experts.”
The participants revealed in their post assessment that the Philippines is an important site for birdwatching, in terms of the number of rare and endemic species, safety, cultural climate, local bird guide expertise, transportation and road networks. The quality of accommodations and food likewise exceeded their expectations.
Filipino bird guides Nicky Icarangal and Adrian Constanino who accompanied the group were also commended for their extensive knowledge of Philippine endemic birds. The party further suggested the months of January to March as the best time to bring clients to the country for a pleasant weather.
“Birdwatching is admittedly in its fledgling stage in the country that’s why we enjoin our partner stakeholders to support one of our biggest tourism revenue generators,” added Tourism Undersecretary Eduardo Jarque, Jr.
The potential birdwatching market most likely travels in groups of 10 persons, stays for 18-23 days and spends a minimum of US$ 6,000-7,000 excluding airfare, Jarque added.
DOT-Chicago is working closely together with its head office to tap the burgeoning market from the US.
DOT North America Team Head and Director Corazon Jorda-Apo shared, “Part of the long-term strategy of the DOT for birdwatching includes intensive manpower training for local bird guides and forest rangers. At present we are in the process of selecting top seven birding destinations which will be the focus of product development and marketing efforts.”
Supporting the DOT and PCVC in its program were CCT 168 Travel and Tours, Hotel Intercontinental Manila, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, DOT Region 7, Puerto Princesa local government, Maribago Blue Waters Resort, Kaishu Restaurant and Hilton Cebu.
Last year, the country’s Cebu Flowerpecker received the Bird Life Species Champion award in the British Birdwatching Fair in Oakham, Rutland, United Kingdom.
Known as the ‘Woodstock of Birders,’ the British Birdwatching Fair is an exclusive event where all sectors in birdwatching and wildlife conservation from all over the world gather.
The DOT was also named as the Species Champion Guardian for the said endemic bird during the event.
(Story courtesy of PNA)

Someone should remind Leo that The Beach was inspired by El Nido and Boracay.

That's right! But the second novel by Alex Garland 'The Tesseract' was really set in the Philippines and yet in the movie, it became Bangkok again..Damn..:lol:

That's right! But the second novel by Alex Garland 'The Tesseract' was really set in the Philippines and yet in the movie, it became Bangkok again..Damn..:lol:

May galit yata sa atin ang Hollywood..

May galit yata sa atin ang Hollywood..

sa abu sayyaf takot:D


baka magbago na ngayong dami ng survivor na shoot sa Pinas

sa abu sayyaf takot:D


baka magbago na ngayong dami ng survivor na shoot sa Pinas

hmp. galit talaga sa atin.

hmp. galit talaga sa atin.

:lol:

bahala ka:D


basta ako, takot sila:D:lol:

May galit yata sa atin ang Hollywood..

Baka naman binayaran ng Thais ang producer nung movie para palabasin na Thailand.

Lam mo naman Thailand, insecure sa atin..

Pag dating ng araw may igaganti rin tayo sa mga yan...pati sa Malaysia.

Baka naman binayaran ng Thais ang producer nung movie para palabasin na Thailand.

Lam mo naman Thailand, insecure sa atin..

Pag dating ng araw may igaganti rin tayo sa mga yan...pati sa Malaysia.

ikaw talaga mapagbintang ka:D:lol:

ang sama mo, walang kasin-sama:D:lol::lol::lol:


at anong pinagsasabi mo palabasin sa Thailand, eh shooting nga location Thailand eh hindi sa Pinas, kasi dapat Pinas yun dahil yun yung location kung sa libro pagbasehan:D

sama mo":D

ikaw talaga mapagbintang ka:D:lol:

ang sama mo, walang kasin-sama:D:lol::lol::lol:


at anong pinagsasabi mo palabasin sa Thailand, eh shooting nga location Thailand eh hindi sa Pinas, kasi dapat Pinas yun dahil yun yung location kung sa libro pagbasehan:D

sama mo":D:lol::lol::wave::baeh3::naughty:

Inay ko! para kang masamang bacteria na biglang sumulpot sa kawalan. Sumama tuloy tiyan ko sa iyo..:lol::lol::lol::lol:

virus ka, ikaw nga tong sumingit lang eh:D
hindi nga alam anong pinag uusapan eh:D

virus ka, ikaw nga tong sumingit lang eh:D
hindi nga alam anong pinag uusapan eh:D

nanay ko..nagsasalita yung masamang bacteria....toinks!:lol::lol:

Anyway, I hope the new Tourism secretary can duplicate what Gordon and Durano has done for the country...:)

Baka naman binayaran ng Thais ang producer nung movie para palabasin na Thailand.



I wouldn't doubt that.

In fact the Philippines should also start doing something similar in order to
promote our beautiful country in a very positive way.

It's a win-win situation for all!

Just last night my wife saw a group of tourists walking around Bergdorf Goodman
along 5th Avenue as part of the "Sex in the City" tour package. That movie is
somehow responsible for bringing those tourists to New York City.


:horse:

May galit yata sa atin ang Hollywood..

Hwag ka, In Starship Troopers, Johnny Rico was pinoy. Sa movie, he's Argentinian. :ohno::ohno:

Hwag ka, In Starship Troopers, Johnny Rico was pinoy. Sa movie, he's Argentinian. :ohno::ohno:

He's American but lives in Buenos Aires.

^^ Oh yeah... I must've been watching too many sex scenes there :D

That's right! But the second novel by Alex Garland 'The Tesseract' was really set in the Philippines and yet in the movie, it became Bangkok again..Damn..:lol:

What do you expect? Its directed by The Pang Brothers who also directed Bangkok Dangerous. They do alot of work in the Thai film industry.

^^ We need to rebrand our country, make better films, improve our beaches.

We need to have our own image. We do not need to remake what we have made and duplicate what our asian neighbors did with their tourism. We need to experiment on our tourism, make the campaigns better and more gorgeous.

^^ We need to rebrand our country, make better films, improve our beaches.

We need to have our own image. We do not need to remake what we have made and duplicate what our asian neighbors did with their tourism. We need to experiment on our tourism, make the campaigns better and more gorgeous.

Beaches in The Philippines are already fine cause they are among the best in Asia.

Films yes.

The Philippines already has its own unique image when it comes to tourism and promotion. The only thing is again, advertise them to international networks.

It takes the will power to do that.

^^ something ponderous...

x9YHg07NLLc

KjhsbXvVCvQ (2nd CM, 1981)

Thats the thing, to promote The Philippines to the world it has to be promoted internationally just like Shanghai World Expo.

Not TFC, happyslip and so on.

Beaches in The Philippines are already fine cause they are among the best in Asia.

Films yes.

The Philippines already has its own unique image when it comes to tourism and promotion. The only thing is again, advertise them to international networks.

It takes the will power to do that.

And money.

Thats the thing, to promote The Philippines to the world it has to be promoted internationally just like Shanghai World Expo.

Not TFC, happyslip and so on.

DOT budget is only P1.2 Billion vs. Malaysia's budget of P12 Billion, just a 10% of their budget.

That really speaks how the government of Malaysia prioritizes tourism as a major contributor to their economy.

That's right! But the second novel by Alex Garland 'The Tesseract' was really set in the Philippines and yet in the movie, it became Bangkok again..Damn..:lol:

May galit yata sa atin ang Hollywood..

NAKU lalayo pa tayo. yun na lang THE GREAT RAID, sa china at australia ang location eh sa cabanatuan at manila ang settings.

Pero in fairness nareplicate nila ang old manila sa movie.

But then sana dito na lang talaga kinunan noh :ohno:

NAKU lalayo pa tayo. yun na lang THE GREAT RAID, sa china at australia ang location eh sa cabanatuan at manila ang settings.

Pero in fairness nareplicate nila ang old manila sa movie.

But then sana dito na lang talaga kinunan noh :ohno:

We should invite big studios to put sets in the Philippines. Yung pwede magamit ulit..

We should invite big studios to put sets in the Philippines. Yung pwede magamit ulit..

alam ko meron na gusto maglagay sa Subic ata yun, nabasa ko sa news, dito rin sa SSC.
yung bigfoot sa Cebu meron na ata silang facilities.

alam ko meron na gusto maglagay sa Subic ata yun, nabasa ko sa news, dito rin sa SSC.
yung bigfoot sa Cebu meron na ata silang facilities.

Okay sana pag may Universal Studios...

DOT budget is only P1.2 Billion vs. Malaysia's budget of P12 Billion, just a 10% of their budget.

That really speaks how the government of Malaysia prioritizes tourism as a major contributor to their economy.

let's not compare lang muna sa Malaysia...
Let's compare lang sa panahon ni Gordon na kahit isang commercial per week, atleast merong napapanood.
Nasa deskarte lang talaga and for me ang diskarte ni Gordon to BRAND the Philippines as a tourism destination id the best deskarte for me:)

Ang sa akin lang naman, sana itinuloy man lang ang branding na yun... Yan kase ang nakakapag pasikat sa isang lugar e, yung branding ba, madaling maalala ng turista.

Kung ibebenta natin ang bansa natin as tourism destination:
If we say Thailand, Malaysia, India, Taiwan or Philippines, walang ka urge urge ang dating unlike if we say Amazing Thailand, Incredible India, Fun in Taiwan, Malaysia Truly Asia or WoW Philippines, mabasa ko lang ang mga yan, parang gusto ko nang puntahan...

Okay sana pag may Universal Studios...

Halos kapareho ng Universal Studios ang Bigfoot sa Cebu interms of facilities, size and quality... Afterall Bigfoot originally from New York City decided to transfer in Cebu (whole company)...

SSC Cebu was once invited in the screening of one of their movies shown in Asia. Nakapasok kami sa isang studio nila, kami lang ang Pinoy, puro puti ang nag screen. After the movie, pina fill up kami ng form about sa movie about sa quality sa sound, sa story, sa twist, sa climax etc... Very modern and big ang Bigfoot Studios in Cebu...

BIGFOOT Studios and Soundstages in CEBU

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i83/MarkiiBoi4/SSCSRPBigfoot11.jpg

New Bigfoot Studios and Soundstages at South Road Properties (Cebu).

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s204/hans_boy/pic-2.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s204/hans_boy/pic1.jpg



Cebu City signs up movie production facility
By Irene Sino Cruz
Visayas Bureau
Last updated 07:09pm (Mla time) 02/25/2007



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Existing Bigfoot Entertainment Studios in mactan

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Currently u/c in SRP


http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u177/Jarenz_038/Under%20Construction/bigfootsrp.jpg


Another soundstage expansion...


http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u177/Jarenz_038/Under%20Construction/bigfootsrp2.jpg

existing building composed of 4 soundstages



http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u177/Jarenz_038/Under%20Construction/bigfootsrp3.jpg



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^^^^

nakikita ko yan pag nanonood ako ng f tv. :cheers:

THERE'S SOMETHING BIG THAT IS ALREADY HAPPENING IN THIS SOUTHERN CITY WICH MOST OF THE PEOPLE IN THE CAPITAL DON'T KNOW

Actually a lot of the scenes of Bigfoot Films were shot in different areas in Cebu... The city scenes, beach scenes etc...


One of BIGFOOT Studio's movies shown in US
KTg88SGECwE&feature=related


A short, in-depth look at the roles of the crew on a feature film. We discover what tool embodies their job - whether it be camera, grip or electric department - and why they love making movies. Filmed in Cebu, Philippines at Bigfoot Studios during production on their latest feature film.
Produced/edited by Steve Ramsden
6fIxjM0Qzrs


How do you make a fight look good for the camera? At Bigfoot Studios in Cebu, Philippines, fight choreographer Shanna Beauchamp and director of photography Erick Crespo reveal a few of the tricks they use with their actors and stunt performers when designing a punch or kick for a movie's action sequence.
Produced/edited by James Wilson
BOvoZyhKFjc&feature=related



A taster of what's to come from Cebu, Philippines as Bigfoot Studios enters another exciting year of productions. Including challenging underwater shoots, sexy fashion shoots, gripping reality TV, ambitious feature film and Director Michael Gleissner at the helm.
K-7zwTL3_gY&feature=related

Here's the DEEP GOLD mobie of Bigfoot Entertainment shot in Cebu and Palawan
B1aMZxDKqrM

0.44 Cebu Skyline

The reason why BIGFOOT transferred in Cebu
BytstjCEjsE&feature=related

^^ Those are all great news. Meanwhile, in Albay...

DiCaprio to perk up Albay environmental campaigns

By Rey M. Nasol
Inquirer Southern Luzon
First Posted 14:56:00 07/03/2010

LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines – The provincial government of Albay is preparing for the arrival of Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who will launch environmental promotion and protection activities in the province next month.

DiCaprio, known for his role in the blockbuster movie Titanic as well as other successful movies, will be here for a week-long visit.

Albay Governor Joey Salceda has instructed Albay tourism officials to line up activities that would tap the skills of DiCaprio, particularly in adventure tourism.

Joyce Ramirez, the director for international publicity at PR Asia Worldwide, confirmed that DiCaprio would arrive in Albay on board a private jet in the first week of August.

"We are excited that he wants to promote environmental protection in Albay. So we are preparing environmental options for his one-week stay here," Salceda told the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Saturday.

DiCaprio is expected to visit Albay's tourist destinations, particularly the 4,642-meter-high Mayon Volcano and the white-sand beaches of Misibis resort in Bacacay that would give the province an opportunity to be placed on the world tourism map, he said.

Jose Briones, Albay tourism officer, said his office has prepared tourism adventure activities for DiCaprio in the areas along the Albay Gulf, which offers potentials for jet skiing, seaboarding, or scuba-diving.

Briones said the islands of Cagraray, Rapu-rapu, Buhatan, and San Miguel off Tabaco City have already made preparations for adventure tourism activities for local and foreign tourists.

"These islands are at par with other places elsewhere in the world as far as potentials for adventure tourism due to its white sand, caves, corals and scenic seabeds," Briones said.

Salceda said having a Hollywood role model for environmental protection as well as disaster preparedness efforts would double the effectiveness of the province to deal with the ill effects of calamities.

Albay is visited by 15-20 typhoons every year.

The provincial government has put in place zero-casualty measures against the hazards of lahar flash floods, landslides and flooding.

http://showbizandstyle.inquirer.net/breakingnews/breakingnews/view/20100703-278968/DiCaprio-to-perk-up-Albay-environmental-campaigns

On a related note, just want to share with you all (though some of you may know this already) that the movie "The Beach" which starred the same actor mentioned above and shot in Thailand; was originally intended to be shot in Palawan.

The reason why it was shot in Thailand is because the film crew can not find a hotel big enough to accommodate the huge film crew. FYI.

On a related note, just want to share with you all (though some of you may know this already) that the movie "The Beach" which starred the same actor mentioned above and shot in Thailand; was originally intended to be shot in Palawan.

The reason why it was shot in Thailand is because the film crew can not find a hotel big enough to accommodate the huge film crew. FYI.

correct! after nun naging sikat na ang phi phi island:bash:

THERE'S SOMETHING BIG THAT IS ALREADY HAPPENING IN THIS SOUTHERN CITY WICH MOST OF THE PEOPLE IN THE CAPITAL DON'T KNOW

Actually a lot of the scenes of Bigfoot Films were shot in different areas in Cebu... The city scenes, beach scenes etc...


One of BIGFOOT Studio's movies shown in US
KTg88SGECwE&feature=related


A short, in-depth look at the roles of the crew on a feature film. We discover what tool embodies their job - whether it be camera, grip or electric department - and why they love making movies. Filmed in Cebu, Philippines at Bigfoot Studios during production on their latest feature film.
Produced/edited by Steve Ramsden
6fIxjM0Qzrs


How do you make a fight look good for the camera? At Bigfoot Studios in Cebu, Philippines, fight choreographer Shanna Beauchamp and director of photography Erick Crespo reveal a few of the tricks they use with their actors and stunt performers when designing a punch or kick for a movie's action sequence.
Produced/edited by James Wilson
BOvoZyhKFjc&feature=related



A taster of what's to come from Cebu, Philippines as Bigfoot Studios enters another exciting year of productions. Including challenging underwater shoots, sexy fashion shoots, gripping reality TV, ambitious feature film and Director Michael Gleissner at the helm.
K-7zwTL3_gY&feature=related

wow do you think bigfoot will have an influence on how local movie making is done in our country?

correct! after nun naging sikat na ang phi phi island:bash:

True, but nonetheless, I think it's still a blessing in disguise in the end - because they say, the area has been overdeveloped already - and our Palawan islands have remained pristine up to this day. :)

True, but nonetheless, I think it's still a blessing in disguise in the end - because they say, the area has been overdeveloped already - and our Palawan islands have remained pristine up to this day. :)

They reshaped the beach daw ang sabi, literally nasira.

Anyway, any notable output from Bigfoot? Ive heard of them, matagal na, inc Deep Gold and Mick Gleissner, but uhm anything else?

They reshaped the beach daw ang sabi, literally nasira.

Anyway, any notable output from Bigfoot? Ive heard of them, matagal na, inc Deep Gold and Mick Gleissner, but uhm anything else?


their IAFTV, a filmaking and photography school of which their students are mostly foreigners.

There's hearings that some hollywood stars are interested in doing movies with Bigfoot. One of the names mentioned was Brad Pit. The huge Soundstages in SRP is still under construction.

RT @ANCALERTS: Tourism Sec. Alberto Lim says he doesn't believe in increasing the number of tourists; he says he believes in responsible tourism.

Hmmmmmm

that's what separates cebu from the rest of the islands......the ability to get investors.....BIG ones...

we spent 1.1 million us dollars sa trip namin sa legazpi city, ilo-ilo, bohol, BORACAY, tagaytay city at METRO MANILA.


masaya ako na nakatulong ako kahit kaunti lang sa turismo ng Pilipinas. Sobrang GANDA ng BORACAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :cheers:

Pabalik na kami sa NY sa tuesday. :bash:

that's what separates cebu from the rest of the islands......the ability to get investors.....BIG ones...

I would have to agree. Magaling nga yung mga businessmen and yung LGU sa Cebu.

we spent 1.1 million us dollars sa trip namin sa legazpi city, ilo-ilo, bohol, BORACAY, tagaytay city at METRO MANILA.


masaya ako na nakatulong ako kahit kaunti lang sa turismo ng Pilipinas. Sobrang GANDA ng BORACAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :cheers:

Pabalik na kami sa NY sa tuesday. :bash:



pictures naman... andami nyo namang pera... 1.1M, pwede ba dyan na lang ako magtrabaho sa inyo? hehe

oo nga. ang dami. Thats almost 50 million pesos. Ang yaman naman nyo to have disposable income that big.

^^ :drool:

we spent 1.1 million us dollars sa trip namin sa legazpi city, ilo-ilo, bohol, BORACAY, tagaytay city at METRO MANILA.


masaya ako na nakatulong ako kahit kaunti lang sa turismo ng Pilipinas. Sobrang GANDA ng BORACAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :cheers:

Pabalik na kami sa NY sa tuesday. :bash:

^^I must ask...how could you have possibly have spent $1.1 million during your stay in the Philippines???

^^I must ask...how could you have possibly have spent $1.1 million during your stay in the Philippines???

kasama yata dun yung mga donations nila.

More tourists in Boracay, less in Baguio (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/lifestyle/07/04/10/more-tourists-boracay-less-baguio)

abs-cbnNEWS.com
Posted at 07/04/2010 5:00 PM | Updated as of 07/04/2010 5:42 PM

MANILA, Philippines - The number of tourists visiting the islands of Boracay and Camiguin -- both popular for powder white sand and crystal clear waters, increased by more than 10% during the first 5 months of the year.

Data from the Department of Tourism (DOT) showed that visitors in Boracay reached 378,694 from January to May this year, a 12.15% increase from the same period in 2009.

Boracay, a bone-shaped island in the Western Visayas region, has long been a popular destination for locals and foreigners alike.

During the first 5 months of the year, DOT said more visitors stayed in the island's hotels and resorts.




A rock formation with small trees set near the white sandy shore in Boracay.


"Taiwanese and Chinese tourists in Boracay continued to expand with the increase in charter flight operations between Taipei and Kaoshiung in Taiwan and Shanghai to Kalibo," DOT said.

Some 105,262 tourists, meanwhile, went to Camiguin, also a top destination in the country. This is a 16.61% increase from the 90,269 recorded in the same period last year.

Manila still no. 1

Not surprisingly, Metro Manila is still the country's leading tourist destination with 848,518 visitors from January to May.

The figure is 17.11% higher from last year's 724,572.

"The East Asia market composed of China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Taiwan is the metropolis' major source market, which accounted for 41.78% of its total visitors," DOT said.

It added, "Local residents from other places visiting Metro Manila for tourism-related purposes and staying in hotels and similar facilities registered a share of 35.4%."

Cebu, another major city in the Philippines, came in second with 734,531 visitors during the first 5 months of the year. But unlike Metro Manila, the province didn't post much growth in tourist volume (4%).

Less tourists in Baguio

Other tourist spots in the country (Davao City, Zambales, Bohol, Negros Oriental and Cagayan) posted increases in tourist volume from January to May, save for Baguio City and Ilocos Norte.

DOT said visitors to Baguio only reached 318,677 as of end-May, a 14.75% drop from the 373,820 recorded in the same period last year.

The city, located in Northern Luzon, is well-known for its lush greens and cool weather.

Meanwhile, Ilocos Norte only recorded a total of 81,724 tourists, a 7.52% from last year's 88,366. The province is popular for its historical landmarks and beach resorts.

Philippine history lessons in Paris

Can the country's new leaders help provide answers to Lhyanne's questions?

By Marilyn P. Rayray
Contributor

PARIS, France--I was behind our door ready to ring the bell when I heard my 10-year-old daughter asking her father to help her out with something. She sounded so excited. I heard her repeatedly saying, "Please, Papa..." I decided to eavesdrop for a while and find out what my daughter was up to.

In mixed French-English-Filipino words she said, "Tu peux m'aider (could you please help me), Papa? I have to do this exposition about the Philippines when I go back to school, but I cannot do it alone. It's not easy. Please, Papa..."

"Lhyanne, antayin mo si Mama at sigurado marami siyang alam (wait for your mother, I'm sure she knows a lot)," my husband replied.

"Pero Mama is toujours occupée (But mama is always busy)." Hearing this, I rang the bell. After kissing them, I asked about what was worrying her and assured her that my work schedule would not be so tight in the next two weeks since it was spring break. I would have time to help her out.

"May exposition ako about the Philippines, I have to present the geography, culture, history, commerce, etc. I have two weeks. I have to explain why Filipinos are called 'people of the sea,'" she added in French.

Out of nowhere, my son jokingly butted in: "Mga syokoy daw mga Pilipino, yun ang alam ng mga Pranses. Manood ka kasi ng TV Patrol (Filipinos have fish tails, that's what the French know about us. Just watch TV Patrol)."

My daughter flared up. "That's nonsense, Kuya. They're just scary stories...Fiction!"

It was time to meddle and calm her down before a quarrel erupted. I promised Lhyanne that night that we would work on her presentation together and that she would have the best exposition ever presented in her class.

My children weren't born here in France. I brought them here five years ago, (my daughter when she was five and my son when he was nine). Life is never easy when you're abroad, but it is not any easier when you are away from your children. So no matter how hard, my husband and I decided to have them with us here in Paris.

They spoke good Filipino when they had just arrived. We made sure that Filipino would be the language at home as they might forget it if we only speak French. Later on, I decided to integrate English as well because it is a necessity. My son is coping fairly well. My daughter, well, she has all the three languages mixed up. We don't worry about it and hope that she will sort them out in time just like my son. For sensitive issues, my husband and I talk in our native dialects--Ilocano and Pangasinense.

Love of country

For the entire spring break, my daughter and I worked head-to-head to come up with a well-presented exposition about our home country. My tiresome day would vanish as I listened to her enthusiastically retell what she had learned from Wikipedia.fr, enumerating our country's scenic spots (I knew them by heart when I was younger).

Her eyes would glow as she proudly recited the history of the Philippines, from Magellan's landing to President Arroyo. With our joint research, hers from the French website and mine from stock knowledge and informative Philippine tourism websites, we came up with a beautifully designed, well-sequenced--complete with photos--"Philippine exposition."

The last few days were spent training her for the oral presentation. "Mama, what if they ask me to sing the national hymn?" she suddenly asked in the middle of her presentation practice. "I surely would not be able to do it."

I printed out "Lupang Hinirang" and taught her how to sing it. This won't do, I thought. She barely understood the lyrics, how much more if she were asked to translate them. I foresaw a disaster. While singing the last lines, a familiar tune began humming in my ears: "Ako ay Pilipino, ang dugo'y maharlika..." I sang it out loud and started moving my hands to the beat, singing it with all my heart. My girl seemed enchanted. She listened closely and was startled to see tears falling from my eyes. I, myself, was surprised. I got carried away.

You see, I'd done that for years in my school days, leading the song at the flagpole area where everyone gathered for the flag ceremony every morning. "That's how we pay tribute to the Philippine flag and show our love for our country," I dreamily narrated to her.

"You are sad, Mama kasi nami-miss mo ang Philippine, no?" I answered her with a kiss on the forehead and we both continued to practice singing "Ako Ay Pilipino" until bedtime.

She slept with a smile on her face and it felt so great seeing her that way. When was the last time I put her to bed myself? I just could not recall. A realization came flooding in. For the past few years, I have been so preoccupied with how-to-survive concerns in this part of the world (I work 10 hours a day to keep up with the European pace of living). I have barely bonded with my children. I am even surprised to see how much they have grown.

This Philippine exposition awakened me to the fact that I am a mother of two. That despite the fact that we are living in the Western world--which is not so family-oriented--we are still a Filipino family, bound by love and need. I shook my head determined to make up for lost time. It was not too late.

Proud to be Pinoy

Late afternoon of May 3, I received a text message from my husband: "Hurry home, Lhyanne has a surprise." I came home to find my daughter waving her cahier de correspondence, a notebook where teachers and parents communicate through notes and messages. There was a message from her teacher saying how brilliantly she had presented her exposition and congratulating us, her parents, for having a smart daughter like Lhyanne.

My daughter was so proud that she monopolized the conversation over dinner about how her classmates were amazed by the islands and the historical places she presented; how they admired the beaches and the culture of the Philippines.

She really had delivered her presentation so well that her classmates had voiced out their plans of asking their parents about visiting the Philippines on their summer holiday.

Nothing can compare to the feeling parents have when they see their child so overjoyed. We knew it wouldn't end there. Knowing our daughter, we expected a series of happy stories about her exposition.

The next day, she spent hours browsing Philippine websites for local animals, pearls, and the islands. She had a pile of printed pictures she planned to distribute to her friends the next day. Before bedtime she remarked, "Philippines is really a paradise. I love the Philippines so much." I nodded in agreement and bade her goodnight.

Thursday night, I came home late from church. I expected my daughter to be sound asleep but she had waited to ask me a question: "Ma, I told the class the Philippines will have a new president because there is an election on May 10. My maître (male teacher) asked me how many presidential candidates there were."

"There are nine, anak. Go to sleep now, it's way past your bedtime."

On Fridays, I get off from my job early. It marks the start of my three-day cooking schedule which ends on Sunday night. I rang the doorbell a couple of times but nobody seemed to hear me. This is weird, I thought. Where's my daughter, who rushes every night to open the door for me? I kept pressing the ringer until I got tired and dialed our phone number instead. My son picked it up. "What's taking you so long," I complained.

Apparently, he was in the bathroom and expected his sister to open the door. I walked into our bedroom looking for my daughter. There she was on our bed, lying on her stomach, sobbing.

"What's the matter, anak? Are you sick?"

"Is it true, Mama?"

She sat up on our bed and gave me a look of disbelief. "Ma, my friends said what I said in the exposition about the Philippines was not true. Their parents said they don't want to visit the Philippines, kasi c'est dangereux daw. There are many crimes and terrorists. And my teacher said our government is corrupt, maybe that's why so many want to be president. This isn't true, huh Ma? I hate him," she said and burst into tears.

I held her tightly to my breast. I too was heartbroken. I couldn't say a word. I pacified her somehow because she stopped crying and her shoulders steadied. She rose and asked, "Why are we here, Mama?" She bombarded me with her whys. "Why did we leave our country? Bakit po, Ma? Ang Philippines ang pinaka-beautiful country, di ba? Why do we live here? Can we just go back and stay there, forever?"

I bit my lip. I closed my eyes; I didn't know how to answer. I pulled her back to my chest and kissed her head while caressing her hair gently whispering, "You'll understand in time, mahal ko."

**

Last June 30, I felt my daughter approaching while I was undoing the laces of my sneakers. "Ma, I watched Noynoy kanina," she said, referring to the televised inaugural address of President Benigno Aquino III.

I sat up straight and grabbed her two hands while examining her eyes. "So how was it? How did it go?"

She sat on my lap, her nose wrinkled. "He spoke Tagalog. Ma, I would like to understand everything that he said."

"Sure thing darling...Go turn on the computer and I'll follow after putting the groceries away."

Editor's note: The author is an English tutor and editorial assistant in Paris. Lhyanne, by the way, had another talk with her teacher and feels a little better. A sequel to this story, said Marilyn, will be posted next week on www.mnnetherlands.com.

http://blogs.inquirer.net/livingabroad/2010/07/04/philippine-history-lessons-in-paris/

Philippine history lessons in Paris

Can the country's new leaders help provide answers to Lhyanne's questions?

By Marilyn P. Rayray
Contributor

PARIS, France--I was behind our door ready to ring the bell when I heard my 10-year-old daughter asking her father to help her out with something. She sounded so excited. I heard her repeatedly saying, "Please, Papa..." I decided to eavesdrop for a while and find out what my daughter was up to.

In mixed French-English-Filipino words she said, "Tu peux m'aider (could you please help me), Papa? I have to do this exposition about the Philippines when I go back to school, but I cannot do it alone. It's not easy. Please, Papa..."

"Lhyanne, antayin mo si Mama at sigurado marami siyang alam (wait for your mother, I'm sure she knows a lot)," my husband replied.

"Pero Mama is toujours occupée (But mama is always busy)." Hearing this, I rang the bell. After kissing them, I asked about what was worrying her and assured her that my work schedule would not be so tight in the next two weeks since it was spring break. I would have time to help her out.

"May exposition ako about the Philippines, I have to present the geography, culture, history, commerce, etc. I have two weeks. I have to explain why Filipinos are called 'people of the sea,'" she added in French.

Out of nowhere, my son jokingly butted in: "Mga syokoy daw mga Pilipino, yun ang alam ng mga Pranses. Manood ka kasi ng TV Patrol (Filipinos have fish tails, that's what the French know about us. Just watch TV Patrol)."

My daughter flared up. "That's nonsense, Kuya. They're just scary stories...Fiction!"

It was time to meddle and calm her down before a quarrel erupted. I promised Lhyanne that night that we would work on her presentation together and that she would have the best exposition ever presented in her class.

My children weren't born here in France. I brought them here five years ago, (my daughter when she was five and my son when he was nine). Life is never easy when you're abroad, but it is not any easier when you are away from your children. So no matter how hard, my husband and I decided to have them with us here in Paris.

They spoke good Filipino when they had just arrived. We made sure that Filipino would be the language at home as they might forget it if we only speak French. Later on, I decided to integrate English as well because it is a necessity. My son is coping fairly well. My daughter, well, she has all the three languages mixed up. We don't worry about it and hope that she will sort them out in time just like my son. For sensitive issues, my husband and I talk in our native dialects--Ilocano and Pangasinense.

Love of country

For the entire spring break, my daughter and I worked head-to-head to come up with a well-presented exposition about our home country. My tiresome day would vanish as I listened to her enthusiastically retell what she had learned from Wikipedia.fr, enumerating our country's scenic spots (I knew them by heart when I was younger).

Her eyes would glow as she proudly recited the history of the Philippines, from Magellan's landing to President Arroyo. With our joint research, hers from the French website and mine from stock knowledge and informative Philippine tourism websites, we came up with a beautifully designed, well-sequenced--complete with photos--"Philippine exposition."

The last few days were spent training her for the oral presentation. "Mama, what if they ask me to sing the national hymn?" she suddenly asked in the middle of her presentation practice. "I surely would not be able to do it."

I printed out "Lupang Hinirang" and taught her how to sing it. This won't do, I thought. She barely understood the lyrics, how much more if she were asked to translate them. I foresaw a disaster. While singing the last lines, a familiar tune began humming in my ears: "Ako ay Pilipino, ang dugo'y maharlika..." I sang it out loud and started moving my hands to the beat, singing it with all my heart. My girl seemed enchanted. She listened closely and was startled to see tears falling from my eyes. I, myself, was surprised. I got carried away.

You see, I'd done that for years in my school days, leading the song at the flagpole area where everyone gathered for the flag ceremony every morning. "That's how we pay tribute to the Philippine flag and show our love for our country," I dreamily narrated to her.

"You are sad, Mama kasi nami-miss mo ang Philippine, no?" I answered her with a kiss on the forehead and we both continued to practice singing "Ako Ay Pilipino" until bedtime.

She slept with a smile on her face and it felt so great seeing her that way. When was the last time I put her to bed myself? I just could not recall. A realization came flooding in. For the past few years, I have been so preoccupied with how-to-survive concerns in this part of the world (I work 10 hours a day to keep up with the European pace of living). I have barely bonded with my children. I am even surprised to see how much they have grown.

This Philippine exposition awakened me to the fact that I am a mother of two. That despite the fact that we are living in the Western world--which is not so family-oriented--we are still a Filipino family, bound by love and need. I shook my head determined to make up for lost time. It was not too late.

Proud to be Pinoy

Late afternoon of May 3, I received a text message from my husband: "Hurry home, Lhyanne has a surprise." I came home to find my daughter waving her cahier de correspondence, a notebook where teachers and parents communicate through notes and messages. There was a message from her teacher saying how brilliantly she had presented her exposition and congratulating us, her parents, for having a smart daughter like Lhyanne.

My daughter was so proud that she monopolized the conversation over dinner about how her classmates were amazed by the islands and the historical places she presented; how they admired the beaches and the culture of the Philippines.

She really had delivered her presentation so well that her classmates had voiced out their plans of asking their parents about visiting the Philippines on their summer holiday.

Nothing can compare to the feeling parents have when they see their child so overjoyed. We knew it wouldn't end there. Knowing our daughter, we expected a series of happy stories about her exposition.

The next day, she spent hours browsing Philippine websites for local animals, pearls, and the islands. She had a pile of printed pictures she planned to distribute to her friends the next day. Before bedtime she remarked, "Philippines is really a paradise. I love the Philippines so much." I nodded in agreement and bade her goodnight.

Thursday night, I came home late from church. I expected my daughter to be sound asleep but she had waited to ask me a question: "Ma, I told the class the Philippines will have a new president because there is an election on May 10. My maître (male teacher) asked me how many presidential candidates there were."

"There are nine, anak. Go to sleep now, it's way past your bedtime."

On Fridays, I get off from my job early. It marks the start of my three-day cooking schedule which ends on Sunday night. I rang the doorbell a couple of times but nobody seemed to hear me. This is weird, I thought. Where's my daughter, who rushes every night to open the door for me? I kept pressing the ringer until I got tired and dialed our phone number instead. My son picked it up. "What's taking you so long," I complained.

Apparently, he was in the bathroom and expected his sister to open the door. I walked into our bedroom looking for my daughter. There she was on our bed, lying on her stomach, sobbing.

"What's the matter, anak? Are you sick?"

"Is it true, Mama?"

She sat up on our bed and gave me a look of disbelief. "Ma, my friends said what I said in the exposition about the Philippines was not true. Their parents said they don't want to visit the Philippines, kasi c'est dangereux daw. There are many crimes and terrorists. And my teacher said our government is corrupt, maybe that's why so many want to be president. This isn't true, huh Ma? I hate him," she said and burst into tears.

I held her tightly to my breast. I too was heartbroken. I couldn't say a word. I pacified her somehow because she stopped crying and her shoulders steadied. She rose and asked, "Why are we here, Mama?" She bombarded me with her whys. "Why did we leave our country? Bakit po, Ma? Ang Philippines ang pinaka-beautiful country, di ba? Why do we live here? Can we just go back and stay there, forever?"

I bit my lip. I closed my eyes; I didn't know how to answer. I pulled her back to my chest and kissed her head while caressing her hair gently whispering, "You'll understand in time, mahal ko."

**

Last June 30, I felt my daughter approaching while I was undoing the laces of my sneakers. "Ma, I watched Noynoy kanina," she said, referring to the televised inaugural address of President Benigno Aquino III.

I sat up straight and grabbed her two hands while examining her eyes. "So how was it? How did it go?"

She sat on my lap, her nose wrinkled. "He spoke Tagalog. Ma, I would like to understand everything that he said."

"Sure thing darling...Go turn on the computer and I'll follow after putting the groceries away."

Editor's note: The author is an English tutor and editorial assistant in Paris. Lhyanne, by the way, had another talk with her teacher and feels a little better. A sequel to this story, said Marilyn, will be posted next week on www.mnnetherlands.com.

http://blogs.inquirer.net/livingabroad/2010/07/04/philippine-history-lessons-in-paris/

Indeed, Filipinos are people of the sea, a maritime people. It's in our genes dating back to our Austronesian heritage. Unfortunately, Philippine history textbooks have not been updated to go back to the Austronesian times.

sana mapansin din ng mga turista ang region 2. marami na palang magandang nangyayari sa may parteng cagayan tulad ng sun city casino. na-amaze ako when i saw the pictures na naka-post sa cagayan valley thread. very nice yung casino resort.

originally posted by 29goldstars (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=58621101&postcount=161)



Suncity Casino & Resort
San Vicente, Santa Ana, Cagayan

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4024/4694597741_034fd722ef_b.jpg


http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4009/4694598379_7301885c4f_b.jpg

images by erickson delacruz & hosted on flicker

Philippine history lessons in Paris


the story is very touching... almost like a short novel.

^^ Parang naluha nga ako eh. I think our DoT in Paris should work harder. Pero diba ang Survivor France was shot in the Philippines at least twice?

Subic beach in Calitaan matnog matnog sorsogon will have a share of this visitor once fully develop.

Internet connectivity can help promote this beach as a result more and more people will visit. We can give internet connectivity in Subic but perhaps in 2011 because we're short of budget and we don't have support from Local and National government.

nice story.....hope we could answer her questions too....

Here's the DEEP GOLD mobie of Bigfoot Entertainment shot in Cebu and Palawan
B1aMZxDKqrM

0.44 Cebu Skyline

Movies like this will definitely help Philippine tourism sector...:cheers:

babaguhin na nman ang campaign ng pinas....wala tayong constancy kaya tuloy nde mapansin masyado tayo.....yung malaysia truly asia at ang amazing thailand....pati campaign ng hk at singa...nde nagbabago....decada na binibilang.....tayo bawat upo ng secretary......gusto mag imprint ng kanyang pangalan.....hay buhay....

babaguhin na nman ang campaign ng pinas....wala tayong constancy kaya tuloy nde mapansin masyado tayo.....yung malaysia truly asia at ang amazing thailand....pati campaign ng hk at singa...nde nagbabago....decada na binibilang.....tayo bawat upo ng secretary......gusto mag imprint ng kanyang pangalan.....hay buhay....

kahit hindi sa turismo ito, pero mga opisyal talaga meron hindden agenda pag sila naka upo.

tulad nito

hindi lang namn dyan, pati kalye ng taguig, sa banketa, merong naka ukit na JD at FT. anak ng titing, nainis ako sa mga to, sa halip na pagandahin ang kalsada/kalye para kaaya-aya sa mata ng mga turista at mamayan, ito pinagkakaabalahan, pag ukit ng kanilang mga initials.

Sino si JD at FT?

mga opisyales daw to sabi ng laborer na nag ukit.:ohno:

^^ Isa pang batas na dapat ipanukala...

Dapat ipagbawal na ang pag-iimprenta ng mga mukha o di kaya pangalan ng mga pulitiko sa mga public infra projects.

kasama yata dun yung mga donations nila.

Yup, Kasama na yung mga donations for schools, training equipments, training center, hotels, foods, plane tickets, baggage expenses, island activities, rent ng coaster, trucks and so on.

Upload ako ng pictures kapag nasa NY na ako. :cheers:

http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/3929/photo1258.jpg
Boracay
Ilo-Ilo Airport
http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/1387/photo1280d.jpg
http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/3360/photo1281.jpg

kahit hindi sa turismo ito, pero mga opisyal talaga meron hindden agenda pag sila naka upo.

tulad nito

hindi lang namn dyan, pati kalye ng taguig, sa banketa, merong naka ukit na JD at FT. anak ng titing, nainis ako sa mga to, sa halip na pagandahin ang kalsada/kalye para kaaya-aya sa mata ng mga turista at mamayan, ito pinagkakaabalahan, pag ukit ng kanilang mga initials.

Sino si JD at FT?

mga opisyales daw to sabi ng laborer na nag ukit.:ohno:

me tama ka diyan sis.

yun ngang marker sa Magalang kung galing ka ng concepcion tarlac, nakalagay yung pangalan ni Lito Lapid as governor dun sa welcome marker. Eh ang tagal ng nanungkulan ni Lito as governor ng Pampanga. Ang problema ngayon yung malaking pangalan nya sa marker andun hindi maaalis.

Ewan ko lang ngayon ah kasi SCTEX ang daan ko lagi. Pero pihado nandun pa rin sya.

DI ba si Miriam may batas na regarding sa mga government projects na nagbaban na ilagay ang mga pangalan ng mga politiko. Gaya ng gym, waiting shed etc. kahit nga sa tarp bawal na yata??? Im not really sure lang kung naging batas???

part of name recognition yun....para manalo sa halalan...

More tourists in Boracay, less in Baguio (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/lifestyle/07/04/10/more-tourists-boracay-less-baguio)

abs-cbnNEWS.com
Posted at 07/04/2010 5:00 PM | Updated as of 07/04/2010 5:42 PM

MANILA, Philippines - The number of tourists visiting the islands of Boracay and Camiguin -- both popular for powder white sand and crystal clear waters, increased by more than 10% during the first 5 months of the year.

Data from the Department of Tourism (DOT) showed that visitors in Boracay reached 378,694 from January to May this year, a 12.15% increase from the same period in 2009.

Boracay, a bone-shaped island in the Western Visayas region, has long been a popular destination for locals and foreigners alike.

During the first 5 months of the year, DOT said more visitors stayed in the island's hotels and resorts.




A rock formation with small trees set near the white sandy shore in Boracay.


"Taiwanese and Chinese tourists in Boracay continued to expand with the increase in charter flight operations between Taipei and Kaoshiung in Taiwan and Shanghai to Kalibo," DOT said.

Some 105,262 tourists, meanwhile, went to Camiguin, also a top destination in the country. This is a 16.61% increase from the 90,269 recorded in the same period last year.

Manila still no. 1

Not surprisingly, Metro Manila is still the country's leading tourist destination with 848,518 visitors from January to May.

The figure is 17.11% higher from last year's 724,572.

"The East Asia market composed of China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Taiwan is the metropolis' major source market, which accounted for 41.78% of its total visitors," DOT said.

It added, "Local residents from other places visiting Metro Manila for tourism-related purposes and staying in hotels and similar facilities registered a share of 35.4%."

Cebu, another major city in the Philippines, came in second with 734,531 visitors during the first 5 months of the year. But unlike Metro Manila, the province didn't post much growth in tourist volume (4%).

Less tourists in Baguio

Other tourist spots in the country (Davao City, Zambales, Bohol, Negros Oriental and Cagayan) posted increases in tourist volume from January to May, save for Baguio City and Ilocos Norte.

DOT said visitors to Baguio only reached 318,677 as of end-May, a 14.75% drop from the 373,820 recorded in the same period last year.

The city, located in Northern Luzon, is well-known for its lush greens and cool weather.

Meanwhile, Ilocos Norte only recorded a total of 81,724 tourists, a 7.52% from last year's 88,366. The province is popular for its historical landmarks and beach resorts.



Been to Baguio a week ago and it's a bit disappointing. Sana magkaroon ng Urban Make-over para bumalik yung dating ganda nito.

^^ mahirap na yan ibalik.. as usual... mahina ang political will.. specially to relocate people.

hayaan mo sila...bumagsak mga pasaway ayaw makinig.....sinabi ng papangit ng papangit ang baguio ayaw maniwala....buti yun pag wala ng pupunta konti na trapik...konti na pollution...magsisilipat yan sa ibang lugar....

hayaan mo sila...bumagsak mga pasaway ayaw makinig.....sinabi ng papangit ng papangit ang baguio ayaw maniwala....buti yun pag wala ng pupunta konti na trapik...konti na pollution...magsisilipat yan sa ibang lugar....

Baguio is very disappointing, nababoy ang lugar, too much development na wala sa ayos.

Baguio was designed with a maximum population of 15K only. Sayang talaga ganda pa naman nyan noon.

Baguio was designed with a maximum population of 15K only. Sayang talaga ganda pa naman nyan noon.

Sadly hindi ko na naabutan ang tinatawag nila na romantic days ng Baguio...

^^ Maliit pa ang Baguio, and there's the threatened global warming woes.

here's another way to attract foreign tourists to come to cebu

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/market-cebu-english-hub

More on Cebu...

China cites Cebu as ‘Best Honeymoon Destination’
By MALOU M. MOZOJune 12, 2010, 1:36pm

CEBU CITY – Cebu’s bid to become the “Wedding Capital of Asia” got a big boost after the Chinese tourism agency described it as the “Best Honeymoon Destination” at the World Trade Fair 2010 in Shanghai, China.

“Being recognized as the best honeymoon destination says a lot about the beauty of Cebu, especially the beaches, resorts, and hotels,” said Department of Tourism (DoT) Senior Adviser Phineas Alburo in an interview Saturday.

Alburo raised optimism that the award will result in more honeymooners going to Cebu, especially foreign tourists who are on the lookout for an affordable wedding and honeymoon destination on a tropical island.

“Cebu has emerged from just being a beach destination. Being proclaimed as a honeymoon destination is a big step to luring more foreigners here. When these couples chose to wed here, they would surely bring their families,” said Mila Espina, who chairs the tourism advocacies of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

In a statement to Manila Bulletin, the DoT said that Cebu was named as the “Best Honeymoon Destination” at the World Trade Fair 2010 in Shanghai, China, this week, which gathered about 500 trade buyers from tourism association, outbound travel agencies, a nd tour operators.

The win was declared after a public vote and a strict evaluation process undertaken by professional jurors from the Shanghai Tourism Municipal Administration, VNU Exhibitions Asia, and Shanghai International Conference Management Organization.

Tourism Secretary Ace Durano welcomed the award as a well-deserved tribute to the country’s very own “Queen City of the South”.

“As the second most visited destination in the country, next to Metro Manila, Cebu continues to draw more people to add to the 435, 987 tourists whom it posted in this year’s first quarter. We are not surprised that more and more travelers, especially couples, are finding its pristine white beaches, romantic resorts, and breathtaking views, coupled with the innate warmth and friendliness of our locals, a perfect treat for their honeymoon he said.

At present, Cebu enjoys a steady influx of travelers, with top markets including Korea (28 percent), Japan (23 percent), USA (10 percent), and China (6 percent).

Apart from Cebu’s attractive sites and diverse excursion activities, Durano also cited the country’s competitive tour pricing and the continuous development of the transportation sector as influential drivers of tourism growth in the island-province.

Arlene Alipio, head of DoT Team China, shared that charter flights from Shanghai to Cebu and Boracay have helped spur inbound travel growth to Cebu.

Undersecretary for Tourism Planning and Promotions Eduardo Jarque Jr. expressed enthusiasm and pride over the recent award bagged by the country, calling it “an affirmation of the country’s world-class tourist spots and its unfailing efforts to reach out to new markets”.

Shanghai-based Philippine Tourism Attaché to China Gerry Panga, said, “The Philippines has increasingly become a choice destination among its Asian neighbors, as well as the world, owing to the relentless programs and campaigns that allow travelers to discover and fully appreciate our islands.”

While total China outbound travel grew only by 3 to 4 percent in 2009, outbound travel from Eastern China to the Philippines has been growing at an average rate of 40 percent in terms of visa issuances since the opening of the new Philippine Tourism Office in 2007, the DoT said.

http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/261707/china-cites-cebu-best-honeymoon-destination

Baguio is very disappointing, nababoy ang lugar, too much development na wala sa ayos.

don't worry, malaki pa ang mountain province. nandyan pa ang sagada.
kaya bumili na tayo ng bahay sa sagada bago maging crowded

don't worry, malaki pa ang mountain province. nandyan pa ang sagada.
kaya bumili na tayo ng bahay sa sagada bago maging crowded

Hahaha. Natawa naman ako sa sinabi mo tol. It's this kind of mentality that actually leads to overcrowding..:lol: If everyone thinks the same way, then it wouldn't be too far in the future when even Sagada would look like Baguio today.