Partylist steps up Eastern Visayas’ tourism promotion

TACLOBAN CITY, July 28  -- Huge banners featuring top tourism destinations in Eastern Visayas have been installed in public and private terminals in this city to raise awareness among locals on must-see places.

Florencio Noel, founder of An Waray Parylist, has observed that many locals have yet to visit top destinations in the region since they are unaware of these attractions, activities, and how to get there.

“Many people in Region 8 (Eastern Visayas) have visited destinations in other parts of the country and even abroad, but never visited local destinations. These banners are placed in bus and van terminals because our intention is to attract local tourists,” Noel, a former congressman, told reporters during the unveiling on Friday.

The project is in partnership with the Department of Tourism (DOT), Tacloban city government, and terminal operators. The banners contain photos, basic information, tour rates, and contact details.

“To encourage tourists to visit a site, they just don’t need pictures, but basic facts as well,” Noel added.

At the city’s new bus terminal, officials unveiled the banner of Biri Rock Formations in Northern Samar and Sambawan Island in Maripipi, Biliran.

Considered as the icon destination of Northern Samar province, Biri’s gigantic rock formations sculpted by ferocious waves of the Pacific Ocean is perfect for those who wish to find solitude.

Sambawan Island is endowed with white sands, thriving marine life and warm blue waters lapping up the tree-lined shore.

A tourism banner featuring Kalanggaman Island in Palompon, Leyte was also set up at the private terminal of Duptours, a major transport service provider in the region.

Kalanggaman Island, a one-hour boat ride from the mainland, is a postcard-perfect virgin island endowed with powder white sand and crystal clear waters. It has a long sandbar that is stretching on both sides of the island.

The partylist will also install banners in terminals in Southern Leyte and Northern Samar.

City tourism officer Malou Tabao welcomed the initiative, citing its benefits to the regional capital where big hotels, malls, and regional offices of government are located.

“This will benefit Tacloban being the commercial center of Region 8. Let us help promote destinations to create more opportunities in the region. At the end of the day, these visitors would stay in hotels in Tacloban before heading back home,” Tabao said.

Norberto Lumbre, DOT regional office senior tourism operations officer, said this initiative will complement their tourism promotion efforts.

“This is a big help to traveling public for them to have an idea how much they need to spend to get to our local destinations,” Lumbre said.

The region consists of the provinces of Biliran, Eastern Samar, Leyte, Northern Samar, Samar, and Southern Leyte, and the cities of Baybay, Borongan, Calbayog, Catbalogan, Maasin, Ormoc and Tacloban, the Eastern Visayas’s regional center.

The region remains relatively overlooked compared to other tourist destinations in the Philippines, but this has been slowly changing in the past years as demand for raw nature tourism grows.

Among its popular destinations are Kalanggaman Island, San Juanico Bridge, Leyte Landing Memorial in Leyte; Sambawan Island in Biliran; dive sites in Southern Leyte; Calicoan Island in Eastern Samar; Sohoton Cave and Natural Park in Samar; and Biri Rock Formations in Northern Samar. (SQM/PNA)