Davao City – Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat bared in the One Davao Virtual Presser that the Department of Tourism (DOT) is seeing and pushing for domestic tourism as the new normal in this time of the pandemic.
“Ang swerte ng Pilipinas kasi dependent tayo sa local or domestic tourism. Before the pandemic, nakapagtala tayo ng 1 million domestic trips”, Puyat said.
In Davao Region, the DOT observed that while many establishments closed operations in 2020 there are also new outdoor offerings that started operating early this year.
DOT XI Regional Director Tanya Rabat-Tan cited the opening of resorts, caves, and waterfalls.
Also mentioned is the plan for a Japanese History Bike Tour as a project by the DOT Davao City.
This led the DOT to continue in its provision of accreditation to accommodation establishments following health and safety protocols.
From the survey conducted by the department in May and November 2020, it was learned that 96 percent of the recipients wanted to travel but they want to be ensured health and safety in their travel destination. The survey also showed that people prefer destinations that are open air, open space, and that are of heritage and cultural in nature.
However, following the discovery of new variants of the COVID19 affecting Filipinos recently, Puyat emphasized that the DOT respects and follows the decision of local chief executives as to the opening up for tourism.
“We in the DOT recommends to the IATF. Kaya meron tayong guidelines na nabubuo pero nirerespeto natin kung ano ang tingin ng mga LGUs sa nararapat o kung anong dapat. ,” Puyat said.
The official highlighted that in restarting tourism, there is a need to balance efforts with the goal of maintaining health and safety not just for the travelers but also for the employees in the tourism sector and most especially for those residents within the tourist destination.
(Frances Mae Macapagat, PIA XI | Michael Manguhig, RPN DXKT Davao OIC)