DOT-7 launches new tourism program, features Cebu’s heritage spots
By Fayette C. Riñen
CEBU CITY, October 21 (PIA) -- Cebu’s heritage landmarks are highlighted to be the selling point to draw more tourists as the Department of Tourism (DOT) 7 recently launched its Tourism and Heritage Information Network (THINK 7) program.
The THINK-7 program is a multi-sectoral network comprised of business, opinion, region and travel writers and reporters form the local mainstream media with the objective of further promoting Central Visayas including Cebu as a major tourist destination in the country.
DOT-7 Regional Director Rowena Montecillo said the THINK-7 will focus more on online publication in promoting the region’s popular tourist spots.
“The program is in line with the thrust of Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr. which will maximize the use of social media for tourism promotion,” according to Montecillo.
Montecillo said most travelers seek information about a certain place via the internet and that the utilization of online media in this communication technology age is very essential.
Tourism has a very big potential for growth and that we should all help in tapping that potential to fast track economic progress in our country, the DOT-7 chief said.
Montecillo said that media should also help in promoting the country’s tourist destinations and that hopefully, with the THINK-7 program, media can be partners with the government towards achieving local and national development.
Perry Fajardo, a local newspaper columnist is the chairman of THINK-7 as Fajardo said concerns over traffic congestion, sidewalks and even erroneous tourist maps have to be addressed, this is reported. (PIA-Cebu)
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Tourist arrivals in Cebu up by 11 percent in past 8 mos.
By Fayette C. Riñen
CEBU CITY, Oct. 21 (PIA) -- Cebu continues to be a tourism haven for foreign tourists as tourist arrivals for the past eight months this year rose by 11.33 percent as recorded by the Department of Tourism (DOT) Central Visayas.
From January to August, this year, around 562,673 foreign tourists visited Cebu compared to the 474,319 tourist volume of the same period last year with South Koreans topping the list of foreign visitors.
“South Korea is the country’s leading source of tourists comprising 44.49 percent or around 250,353 Korean visitors arrived in the Philippines for the first seven months, this year,” Montecillo disclosed.
Japanese followed second in volume of tourist arrivals with 106,946 or 19.01 percent while the United States came in third with 50, 6134 tourists or nine percent, this is reported.
Other nationals that visited Cebu come from countries from East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Europe, America, Oceania and the Middle East, this is learned.
Montecillo however, bared that tourists from Hong Kong dropped with negative 52.57 percent and the People’s Republic of China as well with negative 44.19 percent following a travel ban issued after the hostage taking incident in Manila last year.
But the DOT-7 director expressed optimism that Cebu and the rest of Central Visayas would recover as she learned that many tourists form Hong Kong will be coming here before the end of the year.
Domestic tourists coming to Cebu on the other hand, also slightly rose from 750,643 visitors from January to August 2011 compared to the 705,380 local tourist arrivals of the same period in 2010.
The DOT-7 recorded a total of 1,313,316 foreign and local tourists that visited Cebu compared to the 1,179,699 tourist volume of the same period last year. (PIA-Cebu)