Making tour prices 'more fun'

How can we make traveling—even as simple as a 30-minute boat ride from one island to another—more fun for tourists?

This was the challenge tourism secretary Ramon Jimenez posed when he delivered his keynote speech before tour operators and hotel and resort administrators during the 1st General Membership Meeting of the Philippine Tour Operators Association (PHILTOA) recently in Makati City.

“More Fun in the Philippines is not just a tourism slogan; it is a competitive marketing strategy that provides an image of who we are as a country and who will we be in the future,” Jimenez said.
 
The goal of our national tourism development plan, the tourism secretary said, is to make the Philippine tourism industry more competitive. This is why the Department of Tourism will be reviewing all the tour pricings and offerings based on fun.

During the meeting, Jimenez revealed that DOT is now in serious talks with groups from Singapore to launch the much-anticipated “Sunshine Trail,” which aims to attract more tourists from Singapore to visit various destinations in the Philippines, such as Davao, Bohol, and Palawan.

The revelation came at the heels of the Aquino administration’s declaration of funding P182.2 billion worth of infrastructure projects this year as part of the government’s strategy to lure the country’s 4.6-million tourist target for 2012.

“Infrastructures are just one of the many elements that will make our guests feel happier and more comfortable. At the end of the day, the country’s tourism program still relies on the special ability of Filipinos to take a very personal responsibility in caring for our guests—a special experience that tourists, especially those from outside the country—really treasure and pay for. Boracay will only be a stretch of sand without the Filipinos,” he said.

For its part, PHILTOA (an organization of tour operators involved in the advocacy of responsible tourism) has also adopted the “Its more fun in the Philippines” campaign for the 23rd Philippine Travel Mart (PTM) to be held at the SMX Convention Center from August 10 to 12 this year. Using the slogan as the official theme, the country’s biggest annual trade show is set to boost the campaign for sustainable domestic and inbound tourism.

With the recent developments, organizers of this year’s PTM expect an increase both in the number of participants and visitors. Last year’s expo recorded a total of 76,195 individuals in foot traffic, while generating a total of P32,801,180.79 in gross sales.

Contributing to the event’s success was the huge participation of tour operators from among the country’s finest travel locations, which comprised a total of 366 booths from 179 companies during the three-day event that happened last September.

“Ultimately, any campaign will only be as good as the product,” says Cruz, a longtime advocate of sustainable tourism. “We believe that community-based tourism projects and products, coupled with experiential activities such as eco adventures and cultural thematic tours, will be the way to go if the country really wants to meet its projections,” he concludes.

Visit www.philtoa.org for more information.

*** Photos from  izismile.com and abuggedlife.com ***