Travel Update PH - MICECON 02/28/23

MICECON 2023 highlights Davao as key MICE destination

Davao City is hosting this year’s MICECON once again after 10 years. The conference is deemed as an effective way to restart and boost economic and tourism activities, not only in the Davao region but also the rest of the Philippines and the world.

The Department of Tourism through the Tourism Promotions Board Philippines (TPB) and the City Government of Davao spearheads the M.I.C.E. Conference (MICECON), the largest gathering of Meetings,

Incentive Travel, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) professionals in the country to be held on March 1 to 3 at the SMX Convention Center in SM Lanang Premier.

“Davao’s hosting of the MI-

Build it and they will come

By Pinky Forte

More convention centers are being built and existing ones expanded as the industry gets ready for the return of business events and for the growing trend for bigger events, especially exhibitions.

The largest convention centers are concentrated in Metro Manila yet pre-pandemic, they were already operating full capacity and had to turn down some events due to lack of space.

The shortage of convention centers outside Metro Manila is now being addressed, albeit slowly.

Over at the Manila Bay MICE area, the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) is adding 2,000 sqm of venue space on the upper floors of the Plenary Hall and reception halls this year while its adjacent multi-storey building project with an area of 30,000 sqm will be completed by 2026. PICC already has over 70,000 sqm of floor space including the event venues, ancillary facilities, lounges, the courtyard, Forum, among others.

SMX Convention Center (SMX) Manila has a total floor area of 17,170 sqm, with little elbow room for expansion while World Trade Center Metro Manila (WTCMM) has an indoor exhibition space of 10,560 sqm and outdoor space of 10,000 sqm.

Yet SMX Manila and

WTCMM have become small for huge exhibitions like the annual Philconstruct Forum, automotive and a few other shows such that organizers have to book both venues for one exhibition.

Industry sources noted that while in the past exhibitions was part of a convention or a congress, now it is not unusual for exhibitions to become the main event.

Newport World Resorts has become a thriving MICE destination with Marriott Grand Ballroom (MGB) and eight hotels within it. MGB expanded its 8,000 sqm of function space when it opened the 3,800 sqm MGBX Convention Hall on the lower level B1 last year.

Like other integrated resorts, the hotels at Newport World Resorts have varying sizes of ballrooms and meeting rooms. One of these, Sheraton Manila Hotel, converted its Collab co-working area into an events space last year, providing an additional 1,000 sqm of space for a total event space of 1,760 sqm.

Not far from the metro, Clark is fast becoming a MICE hub.

garita Montemayor Nograles.

With the theme, “MICEConverge: Blaze New Trails,” the three-day conference is a hybrid event expected to bring in 500 in-person delegates and up to 2,000 online participants from here and abroad.

CECON will provide a tremendous boost to the city’s tourism industry and a huge step towards its own vision of making Davao a preferred MICE destination not only in the Philippines but in Asia”, said TPB COO Maria Mar-

Highlights of the event include the MICE Youth Challenge, Power Dressing and Glam Makeup Sessions and Workshops where Davao’s finest tourism and product services will be on full display with the sub-themes, “Celebrating Nature”, “Celebrating Diversity” and “Celebrating Travel and Technology.”

championship golf courses and a compendium of luxury hotels and resorts including Banyan Tree, Angsana, Sofitel, Emblems, The Luxury Collection and Westin.

SMX Clark has over 4,061 sqm of events space while Quest Plus Conference Center has a combined meeting rooms of 1,288 sqm can host smaller events.

At the sprawling Hann Casino Resort, Widus Hotel and Casino’s grand ballroom has 1,339 sqm enough for business events ranging from 720 to 1,088 pax depending on set up. Surrounding the ballrooms are 7 breakout rooms, of which biggest can accommodate up to 150 pax. It has three other function rooms offering a total of 372.6 sqm for 272 pax. Meanwhile, the newly minted 372-key Swissotel Clark has 5 meetings rooms with a total area of 211.03 sqm and an adjoining lovely foyer ideal for private board meetings and small celebrations. Marriott Clark has five event rooms with a total of 1,014 sqm venues for up to 650 pax, and 4 breakout rooms for smaller gatherings.

Expect more from Hann Development Corp. which is transforming a 450-hectare land in New Clark City in Tarlac into Hann Reserve with three 18-hole

NUSTAR Resort and Casino in Cebu South Road Properties (SRP) is to launch its 2,000-pax NUSTAR Convention Center in the second quarter and Fili Ballroom of the Fili Hotel later this year.

The SMX Convention Center Cebu, also at SRP, is targeting a 2026 opening. It will have over 20,000 sqm of leasable space for over 15,000 pax depending on the event set up.

SMHCC, the country’s largest MICE operator with eight exhibition and convention venues in key cities, has a total leasable space of 42,085 sqm and its nine hotels has a total of 2,212 keys.

Megaworld Hotels and Resorts will debut the 1,500-pax Mactan New Town Convention Center in two years. It will be located near the 550-key Belmont Hotel and 547-key Savoy Hotel in Mactan, easing the sparse business events venue in Cebu.

In mid-2022, Megaworld opened The Tent at Boracay Newcoast, in the eponymous township which has already 1,000 hotel rooms - and increasing. The Tent at Boracay Newcoast is a welcome addition to the island’s MICE venues, complementing its biggest convention facility, Paradise Garden Convention Center.

What is our competitive edge now?

Latest statistics put us in 6th place in the most visited countries in the ASEAN, with Cambodia on the way to dislodging us in a year or two. For a country that has a lot of natural resources and attractions, we should be in the Top 3. Boracay, Palawan, Bohol are consistently rated in the Top 10 attractions in the world, and only Bali in Indonesia is rated consistently among our neighbors. We have yet other surprises like Siargao, Cebu, and Ilocos.

But first, do we have the intent to be competitive?

A stakeholder recently told me that if English proficiency was our advantage years ago, it is not anymore now. Of course, in general, more Filipinos speak English even in the provinces, but in the tourism and hospitality industries, there is marked progress that English is already well-spoken by the front liners of the rest of the region, and that is what matters.

Meanwhile, DOT will roll out The Philippine Experience Cultural Heritage and Arts Caravan centered around the country’s Filipino-ness with thematic experiences on food and gastronomy, pilgrimage and wellness, festivals, living culture, and heritage.

In the CEO World survey of January 2021, the Philippines is at #64 of 165 countries surveyed in the World’s Best Countries for Cultural Heritage Influence, Thailand is #5, Indonesia is #46, Vietnam is #52, Malaysia is # 83. Singapore is #39. Top

5 is Italy, Greece, Spain, India, and Thailand.

The key attributes were architecture, artistic legacy, music, literature, history, cultural attractions, and cultural accessibility.

It is safe to say that the common denominator of all the countries ahead of us is the tourism budget allotted for promotions. That reflects on the government’s lack of support no matter how much lip-service politicians give to the public. A lack of creative effort and innovation Is also noticeable, compared to our competitors whose tourism budgets are so large like Singapore that they can even come up with Farm Tourism and promote it. The list also shows that the most with cultural influence are among the richest.

However, The survey also showed that when other countries can be rich and showy, heritage is a stand alone feature that explains why

countries like New Zealand rank low in the list.

So, how influential are we with cultural heritage?

It is generally believed that many of the top-rated countries have kept their key attributes despite being victims of war, incursions, and natural disasters as in the Philippines. The Philippines is also known as the most westernized country in Asia. Colonized by Spain for more than 300 years and 5 decades under the United States, our big cities have assimilated their culture as if it’s their own. Many Filipinos speak and understand English more than Tagalog, the national language.

We have some of the best beaches in the world, although beaches do not make an influential culture.

What else do we have to show?

Our churches pale by comparison to the churches in

Europe and the temples in Asia. For shopping alone, the Philippines isn’t a high-end destination. Foreign tourists spent only USD27 million on luxury goods at retail in 2018. But Filipinos buy a lot of luxury brands, fortifying the fact that we are a consumer nation of 107 million,

We have better chances in food tourism. Our cuisine is #23 in the world according to Food Atlas and Filipino food has started to make waves globally with more than 10 million Filipino OFWs who can offer a sampling to citizens of the country they are working in.

We need some more critical thinking in creating more value-added tourism products to offer the tourist if we have to make it big in the region, if not the world.

Are we competitive?

We should sell our culture more than buy from other cultures. Get the drift?

DAVAO from mice to MICE Davao’s rise into a significant MICE destination in the Philippines happened gradually over many years, concurrent with the city’s expansion into the thriving economic hub that it is today. Its development from an up-and-coming MICE destination to an established one took decades and worked as a slow burn.

The local economy heavily relies on the tourism sector, which has been nurturing the seeds of the MICE industry. And the city’s natural island to highland appeal, which is rooted in its location along the powerful Davao Gulf and bordered by the majestic ranges of Mt. Apo, the nation’s highest peak, lies at the heart of all this.

Its captivating natural attractions, melting pot culture, dynamic business environment and tourism policies only fortified Davao’s bid to transition from minor to major MICE destination.

Unquestionably, the expansion of its infrastructure including its international airport and seaport and road networks in various parts of Mindanao highlights Davao’s position as a key business center in the region.

Improved access and connectivity are major draws to foreign visitors as it inspired economic cooperation with neighboring nations. And exponential growth in business events and MICE activities also had a ripple effect in MICE and MICE-related investments such as in accommodation, transportation, and travel trade.

And while host communities adapted to the influx of local and foreign visitors, unique Davao hospitality and service easily gained popularity among visitors further branding the city as natural in MICE.

Here are milestones through the past four decades that can be attributed to Davao’s slow but sure growth from mice to MICE:

1981

Pontiff John Paul II, now Saint John Paul II, paid a historic pastoral visit to Davao on February 20, 1981. Thousands of locals and tourists enthusiastically welcomed the Holy Father at the Davao International Airport.

This was the most prominent international special event in the city for that decade that required a major coordinated effort by the national and local governments, private sector, and host communities. It was

DAVAO from mice to MICE

a valuable preview of how MICE development might impact the city’s growth as a tourist destination.

1996

Dato Seri Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad, Prime Minister of Malaysia made a historic visit to Davao on February 6, 1996, to launch together with President Fidel V. Ramos the Brunei Darussalam–Indonesia–Malaysia–Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA). BIMP-EAGA was established by the four countries as a common goal to hasten socioeconomic development of their geographically remote areas that are far from capital cities. This cooperation was a boon to Davao and Mindanao as regional and international MICE became regular fare and direct air connections to Indonesia and Malaysia boosted trade and tourism.

2006

In August 2005, Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano announced that Davao City would host the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) from January 19 through 21, 2006.

Mayor Rodrigo Duterte accepted the challenge of hosting the ATF for the first time after Metro Manila and Cebu in 1992 and 1996, respectively. He spearheaded the preparations together with the Department of Tourism and the tourism private sector of Davao, a default multisectoral setup the city would adopt in future MICE activities.

The nine-day ATF involved meetings

of the tourism ministers of the 10 ASEAN member-countries as well as of China, Japan and Korea, and a travel mart attracting hundreds of tourism sellers and buyers from many parts of the world.

2013

Davao City won the bid to host its first-ever MICECON from March 6 through 9, 2013. MICECON is a program of the Department of Tourism and its marketing arm, Tourism Promotions Board, intended to bolster MICE business in the country.

President Benigno Aquino III opened the conference as keynote speaker with a host of local and international experts as resource persons all throughout the four-day high profile gathering.

The city’s hosting was lauded as a benchmark for future host destinations. Davao’s united front in showcasing a

destination prepared for bigger MICE with new hotels, venues, tourist attractions, and strong safety and security management success factors. Add the unique brand of Davao hospitality.

A major part of the celebration was the use of the newly-opened 7,000 square-meter SMX Convention Center Davao purposely built in anticipation of strong demand for convention and special events space in the city.

2022

The Davao City government, private stakeholders and its MICE Committee, Department of Tourism, and Tourism Promotions Board launched the Davao MICE Strategic Master Plan in consonance with a MICE Ordinance that shall further holistically develop Davao for MICE and secure a great future for Davao MICE.

2023

This year, the MICE industry in the Philippines is declaring: It’s MICE to be back! as Davao hosts a new MICECON blazing new trails in this new season of our lives.

Truly, it is mice to MICE for Davao!

Meet and Greet at MICECON DAvao 2013

DOT Sec. Christina Frasco at the 1st Mindanao Tourism Expo in Davao last January 2023

SMX Davao pre-function lobby

with airports and airlines to reinstate discontinued routes and secure new air services. It has done this through marketing efforts locally and globally, regional travel exchanges and business-to-business meetings, joint campaigns, international roadshows, and familiarisation tours for agents and media,” Routes Asia announced.

Manila to host Rotary International convention 2028

Rotary International announced Manila, Philippines as the winner of the provisional bid to hold its annual international convention, 3-8 June 2028, which is set to be the largest and most multicultural gathering ever hosted in the country.

More than 25,000 Rotary members and participants from around the world are expected to gather in Manila to connect, learn from each other and various experts, and share ideas for bringing positive, lasting change to communities around the world. The annual Rotary convention is held in different cities around the world, and Rotary’s 119th convention is the first to be held in Manila.

The winning bid was led by Rotary regional leader, Past District Governor Samuel D. Pagdilao, Jr. and supported by Rotary clubs in the Philippines. Various public agencies including the Department of Tourism, the Tourism Promotions Board Philippines, and other MICE industry stakeholders also contributed to the successful bid.

“We are delighted and honored to receive the Rotary International’s vote of confidence to host its 119th convention, and we share with the Tourism Promotions Board the excitement of welcoming Rotary’s roster of distinguished members from around the world,” said Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco of the Philippine Department of Tourism.

PHL bags back to back wins in Routes Asia 2023

Returning for the first time since 2019, the Routes Asia 2023 Awards, held in Thailand, recognize the incredible work carried out by airlines, airports and destinations in 2022 along with their ongoing strategy for 2023.

The Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) was named winner in the Destination category. The Philippines bested three other countries, namely the Japan National Tourism Organization, Ministry of Tourism Indonesia, and the Singapore Tourism Board for its persistence, “in its efforts to partner

In the Under 5 Million Passenger Category, Mactan-Cebu International Airport was named the winner. GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corporation (GMCAC) has always taken a two-pronged approach to route development: airline marketing to create supply and destination marketing to ensure the sustainability of its airline partners' presence and address the demand for air services.

HSMA-PHILTOA forges partnership for travel exchange

In the quest to strengthen and revive domestic travel, tourism and hospitality, the Hotel Sales and Marketing Association (HSMA) Philippines and the Philippine Tour Operators Association (PHILTOA) inked a historical partnership for the upcoming PHILTOA-HSMA Travel Exchange on March 28-29, 2023.

Exclusive to members only, the two-day affair will see HSMA’s over 150 properties engaging in B2B set up with more than 150 PHILTOA members as they discover and form synergies to boost domestic travel through their destinations and services. This revenue-generating event was conceptualized by their respective boards to provide more avenues in driving success

for their members. HSMA president Loleth So said, “It’s about time that HSMA and PHILTOA venture with our hotel members. What we can do for your agents, and what your agents can do for us? It’s actually perfect, we need each other that’s why we put this one together.”

DOT NCR mulls Hop-On Hop-Off venture

The Department of Tourism-National Capital Region made history as it introduced the Hop On Hop Off (HOHO) Travel by Hub Program during the membership meeting of the Philippine Tour Operators Association.

Presented by Regional Director Sharlene Zabala-Batin, the HOHO is a tour program using state of the art bus transport and a digital application where foreign and domestic tourists can enjoy the cities of Manila, Makati, Ortigas (Pasig), Katipunan (Quezon City), Bonifacio Global City (Taguig), and Pasay/Parañaque through specially-crafted tours using the hop on hop off system and a contactless payment card. This program is a showcase of Metro Manila experience through the latest technology and will provide options for a quick tour to tourists on a layover flight or have a few hours to spend on do-it-yourself tours with seamless and contactless travel system.

The estimated number of passengers per bus will be 30 pax and will run 5 trips a day, and the interval for bus stops is 30 to 45 minutes in consideration of the unpredictable traffic in the Metro. HOHO is expected to go full blast by mid-year of 2023 with Manila and Makati hubs only. It will be expanded to the other 4 hubs in the next few years. Rates and mechanics will be announced soon.

In photo are HSMA Board and PHILTOA Board during the MOA signing. From left: PHILTOA’s Jay Serrano, Emy Malate and Mary Ann Ong, HSMA’s Loleth So, Cristina Carreon and Amie Villena

By Buddy G. Recio

In the run-up to the 2023 MICECON, Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) is faced with a stagnant ranking in the ICCA. Covid-19 pandemic has brought a stop to all global MICE activities in the last two years. The last ranking released was in 2019 wherein the Philippines was in 47th place in the world and 6th and last in the region with 71 events while Thailand had 162 and is in 27th place.

But negative feedback can be used as a learning curve, and this is what current Chief Operating Officer of Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Chief Operating Officer, Maria Margarita Montemayor-Nograles is banking on. “To be globally competitive” is her battlecry, so this year, TPB wants to learn more to be able to give full support to the MICE campaign.

“We do not have enough market research on MICE, we do not have the numbers to tell us where to reach out to creatively find out how to bring more MICE events. We have programs that will take us to MICE conventions around the world and we are working closely with the different MICE destinations like Clark and the rest outside Manila,” COO Nograles explained.

Nograles is quick to point out that DOT Secretary Christina Frasco’s 7-point agenda will have to stay on top-of-mind.

“Anytime we do anything,

it has to fall into her agenda. We have our community-based tourism programs wherein we are going into our own communities like the T’bolis of Lake Sebu, the Cordilleras, Lake Buhi in Bicol. As TPB, we come in and give them a marketing enhancement seminar. Before my work here, I was already working with the indigenous communities. We promote these communities as a destination but over and above that we work towards finding a way to give them sustainable livelihood by way of their products and promoting the destination as a cultural immersion destination,” she related.

She added, “We were just with SoFA Design Institute. They will go to these destinations as their curriculum in their schools dictate, so the young designers of the Philippines will learn about their culture, traditions, and craft so they can incorporate that into

their work. That’s a program that we want to grow in the next few years to include bancas, weaving, mangroves, and the like.”

TPB in action

For his part as TPB Deputy COO, Charles Aames Bautista mentioned, “Recently we just came from PCMA which is the Professional Convention Management Association in the U.S. where we were interactive with over 2,000 international association representatives and one of our goals was what would make them do their events here. So we got a lot of information that we can pass on at the MICECON. It will be one way to make us globally competitive.”

”At The 2022 ICCA convention in Poland, if there is a challenge that we learned there, it was that the Philippines just doesn’t have enough venues. We have more than enough domestic events, PICC, SMX, Marriott, and the World Trade Center are always fully booked.”

“The biggest learning for us is the demand for sustainability. The organizers of conventions and events are literally including sustainability initiatives

”At The 2022 ICCA convention in Poland, if there is a challenge that we learned there, it was that the Philippines just doesn’t have enough venues. We have more than enough domestic events, PICC, SMX, Marriott, and the World Trade Center are always fully booked.”

and programs in their bid documents. It can’t be just the usual elimination of plastics, etc., but deeper concerns like water management, material sourcing, carbon footprint. It means that it is necessary upon us that we build our own supply within the destination but as islands, we are able to do that easier. That is the beauty for our convention areas. The second thing is the specific interests in diversity, equity, and inclusion. As racism is still prevalent in other countries, one of their concerns is the diversity of the staff, so in our case since we come from multi-cultural backgrounds, that is a non-issue. Inclusivity is also a non-issue because we welcome the LGBTQ community.”

Presently, both TPB and the private sector are pinning their hopes on the youth, and it went off to a good start in 2019 when the Philippines won the AFECA Asian MICE Youth Challenge.

And as a follow-up to that, word is out that the Philippines will host the Rotary International Convention in 2028. A second bid won which has not been divulged as of press time will be held in 2025.

“The President has said that it’s the Filipino hospitality and creativity that makes us stand out as a country. We also won another bid. My team was so happy and I had no doubt that we would get that, too,” Nograles gushed.

“What made us win? Again, it is the story of the Filipino identity. They like our culture, the tradition, our being unique,

let’s not be anyone else,” she added.

Tourism watchwords - Faith and spirituality, luxury, wellness Bautista enumerated three categories that will enjoy new focus, medical facilities on cosmetic surgery (all DOT accredited), and the second is spirituality.

“We have our heritage sites being pegged as pilgrimage sites like the ones they do in Italy. Because of our amazing architecture that we have for our heritage sites, we are slowly becoming destinations where they will discover their spirituality. Last year, that was one of the campaigns of TPB where we partnered with Radio Veritas and a tour operator where we did a faith tourism circuit. Next year, we are looking to expand that to create circuits in all different regions,”he revealed.

When asked the third, luxury tourism, Bautista described that luxury has been redefined. “It is not just 5-star resorts but curated experiences. These wealthy people don’t mind going on a hike as long as at the end of the hike, it’s going to be a magnificent view, Instagrammable, that they can share. That is the mindset of the luxury segment, we have a lot of that in the Philippines.”

“When tourists hear about the Philippines, it’s about beaches, resorts, diving, food. We are not placed yet in the luxury category compared to Singapore, etc. but when we talk

about luxury destinations in the Philippines, it’s the 5-star to 10-star level of service. We are promoting those luxury destinations such as Banwa, Lihim, and Balesin domestically and internationally to make sure that we are capitalizing on that

very niche and very important market.”

Bautista stated that TPB will be doing a show in April to promote the Philippines as a luxury destination.

“They also look at luxury wellness like The Farm. Connections is an international show done by Jacobs media in the U.K. they will be doing a show here in April. They are going to hold the first wellnessthemed “Connections” in the Philippines.” This very niche event will have 40 buyers and 40 sellers. Buyers are estimated to have a minimum spend of USD1.5 million each.

“Their show is experiential. We invited them all, working with DOT’s office of product development. We came up with a list that Jacobs Media vetted, and out of the list (50), 25 were categorized as exceptional,10 were acceptable, 15 were denied. DOT will come up with additional recommendations to add to the destinations,” he expounded.

Nograles and Bautista have high hopes for TPB as the marketing agency for Philippine tourism campaigns, marking that last year the organization finished over 200 programs, organized, supported, or coimplemented with other agencies, they exclaimed, “With only 180 workforce including the janitors, that’s how good this agency is.”

With tourism back with a vengeance, expect TPB to be hiring more staff.

“What made us win? Again, it is the story of the Filipino identity. They like our culture, the tradition, our being unique, let’s not be anyone else.”

Maria Margarita MontemayorNograles, TPB COO

Charles Aames Bautista, TPB Deputy COO

Voices from the field

The MICE industry , along with the rest of most travel-related industries, has taken a downturn as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic in the last 2 years. The Covid-19 pandemic brought to light many issues regarding tourism and how fragile related businesses are faced with life-threatening consequences. With the impending cure, many ideas were born as well such as the viability of working from home and zoom conferences.

MICE generates more revenue compared to average visitor spending, but in the absence of relevant data, the path was unclear

we can handle especially with our limited convention centers, and limited number of rooms. I totally agree with devolution. This will give smaller companies a chance to participate in bids, and make us more competitive.“

until DOT launched a MICE roadmap in 2021 meant to have a more defined approach and increase revenues from 4.6 billion pesos reported in 2016.

Now, as travel and tourism is on a vengeful path, MICE has somewhat returned in the radar of stakeholders with new and bigger convention centers, MICE-centric hotels, and finally, a more focused approach by the government.

Travel Update Philippines has interviewed some of the stakeholders to get highlights, views and concerns regarding the Philippines’ state of MICE. There’s a lot of collective wisdom in the industry, and these are their views:

MARGIE MUNSAYAC VP Sales & Marketing, Bluewater Resorts

A Cebu scenario and helping SMEs

“We are all very positive. We have been getting several MICE inquiries as far as 2022 in the domestic scene, especially government MICE events, also corporate events, and more so for 2023. We have several scheduled foreign MICE delegates coming from France organized by a travel agency, Asia Venture, who bid for this. They have been sending us French incentive groups since 2018. They will come back in March , providing me with 2 groups of 41 people each. They will have an itinerary of Cebu and Bohol. They are incentive groups from the insurance and automobile companies. We are also waiting for an ocular from another incentive group who has heard about our place from the social media posts of the first groups, Maribago and Sumilon.

In a way as we transition beyond this pandemic, we are making it more targeted. Devolution would be more advantageous to smaller properties and smaller countries that cannot cater to great numbers, like us. Jaycee conventions and the like are big. To be more successful you target markets/ countries that

BENITO ‘BONG’ BENGZON Executive Director, Philippine Hotel Owners Association

Going big and creative

“On the part of the hotels, we want to use the accelerated recovery of this business (MICE). We want to fill up our banquet rooms, our meeting rooms.

The fundamental question is how do we fill up those rooms? How do we get the incentive rooms back? How do we get the meeting groups back? There are already domestic meetings, but we want the foreign groups and this is where the creativity comes in. What’s trending now is that business travel is growing coupled with leisure.

As part of the team that created the DOT MICE program, I would say that one of the things they have to review is if they still want to chase the numbers. Before the pandemic , the acreage of other countries was huge, 50,000; 100,000, 350,000. Can the Philippines go that way or are we already late again. A devolution? I am not an expert but now that

we are moving out from the pandemic, I think that it is one option that the tourism professionals and academicians would have to consider. We may be stuck in the quagmire that is MICE and have not thought of restructuring the model. That model might not work for us when we think about our strengths.

There are some things that we assume as fundamental. The challenge is if you can make something different than that, well and good.”

destination, but MICE events are actually complimentary to leisure travel, as the former most often than not also include free time for Individuals to explore the island. Another advantage of Boracay as a MICE destination is that participants in business events could bring their families with them. And while they attend to business, their companions can explore the island without them being too far from each other. We see Boracay as an ideal MICE destination because it’s all there in the island, everything is within reach. After your business meeting, you can just easily go to the beach which is just a few steps away. This means a push for business events and also means good news for leisure tourism.”

Boracay is not just the beach

Albiso doesn’t rest on her laurels even after winning the Gold Award at the recent Mabuhay Awards 2022. She remains a stalwart of the Boracay MICE Alliance, a group of stakeholders in the hotels, transportation, travel agencies, restaurants, domestic airlines, local chamber of commerce, local government unit and supported by the Department of Tourism and its marketing arm Tourism Promotions Board.

When asked about why does Boracay is being positioned as a ‘tropical paradise’ for business events, she divulged, “Boracay has not been known as a MICE destination because of its popularity as a leisure

MARISSA NALLANA President, PETCO

MICE needs to be learned, a need for more government support

“Coming from a recovery stage, we are all still in the recovery stage. Before the pandemic, at that time (2019) we were all voicing out our concerns about MICE—the local organizers who wanted to set up new events, new exhibitions, didn't have a place. We were presenting to then Undersecretary Benito ‘Bong’ Bengzon and DOT about our need to provide more

CLEOFE ALBISO Managing Director, Megaworld Hotels & Resorts

convention centers to those who would want to use it, especially the SMEs. There were none available. That is still true up to now, plus the new ones are very expensive. We are more expensive than our Asian counterparts. The minimum budget to come up with a MICE event in the likes of the one ones being held in Malaysia and Thailand is 10 to 15 million peso. The costliest is the venue, 50-60% is the venue, and the organizers cannot afford that without government support.

But on a small scale. With the opening of China, we hope we can use that because China is a major market for exhibitions. Government provides good support to CE organizers, even the provincial ones, providing as much as 70% of the cost.

Another incentive from TPB are incentive packages for organizers here, (domestic package) called the MICE Plus, like venues, hosted dinners, etc. They do not give cash.

For the private sector, we have two associations: one, the PACEOS, the other is The Philippine MICE Academy which is the training ground and arm of PACEOS. We teach MICE to government and private sectors, even to our competitors.

The problem now is that there are no organizers in the provinces. They have convention centers but no organizers — only for social events like weddings, birthdays, small parties — but for industries, there’s none. They have to get from Manila, but not many of us can shoulder heavy transportation costs to go to the provinces. It is needed because it will have a trickle down effect of establishing other businesses like booths, transport, food, etc.

Now, we are looking for a place so we can have a classroom so we can do regular lessons. We are also eyeing the schools so as early as their college days, they will already know what to do. We also aim to teach the LGUs to professionalize organizing of events. In the provinces, the expertise is very low.”

ROBERTO ‘BUTCH’ GARCIA

Deputy General Manager, Philippine International Convention Center

2022 and 2023 highlights

“Being the Covid-19 Chief for PICC, it goes without saying that challenges had to be overcome. Much like having the reputation of being the first Convention Center in Asia, the Forum Tent was the first Stepdown Quarantine Facility in the country under the supervision of the Philippine General Hospital. The 3 halls of the Forum were converted to house 290 beds for patients cleared from Covid but had to undergo the full isolation period.

Should the pandemic return to its vicious state, the historic PICC is ever so ready to ride and overcome such adversity.

The return of MICE business during the 2nd half of 2022 was primarily caused by the easing up and relaxation of Health Protocols and restrictions on massgatherings as well as local and international travel. The holding of Events are affected by economic conditions, and the return of economic activities caused the staging and holding of events.

Over a period of seven months in 2022, PICC played host to more than 400 events. More than 50% of these were from our most resilient market, which is the Government. December was a peak month due to the holding of numerous special events and Christmas parties, and July and August saw the holding of numerous Graduations from different educational institutions because of the shift in academic school calendars.

Health Protocols and accompanying restrictions continue to ease up in 2023. As a result, we continue to

be chosen as a venue for the holding of meetings, conferences and special events. Our optimism is raised even more by the confirmation of 5 international Congresses which will be held in April, June, September, October and November of this year.”

IPs. We are also working on secondary destinations, Leyte, Region 10, and Siquijor island.”

JOJO CLEMENTE, III President, Rajah Tours

Infra, infra, infra

“What needs to be done first? For me, it’s the infrastructure. Tourism is an industry wherein the adage ‘Build it and they will come’ is true. If you can build a mega structure for MICE wherever in Manila, Cebu or Clark your ROI will be attained quickly. SMX is not enough, but when we build, does it have to guarantee that we can fulfill the movements we are looking for?

What is our target? Are we looking at a Singapore scale, or Thailand type of activities?

Let’s build a reputation of being a reliable, dependable MICE destination.The enhancements can come later, the impetus to be creative.

We can really do MICE, how serious are we because we are still talking about the same problems. We even do not have a hotel that has a thousand rooms. How do we move 10,000-15,000 people at one time? DOT should only do policies, not marketing executions, and there should be a clear direction.”

“On the other hand, we at Rajah are doing our share. We opened its golf department because we are reviving golf tours, now we are looking at heritage tours. I hope I can establish this year a Tourism Heritage Foundation, to raise the level of heritage tourism in the country. Beneficiaries would be the smaller tourism communities, indigenous people. We will align it to Angat Buhay, community based, train

MICHAEL ALBAÑA VP General Manager, SMX Convention Centers

Winning bids and counting

As the new VP and GM of SMX Convention Centers, Albaña has old and new conquests to banner:

“The Rotary International Convention has been confirmed for 2028 and that will be held in two venues simultaneously— SMX and SM Arena to host around 13,000 delegates, for 4 days with pre- and post-tours,” he stated.

“This was our second bid as we lost out on the first. This time we are fortunate to have succeeded after their committee went to visit us and looked at our facilities,” he added.

Still in the works but staying positively on track is a bid to host World Vespa Day, a bid that DOT and TPB fully upholds to promote Motorcycle Tourism in the Philippines.”

Traditionally held in Europe as Vespa is manufactured in Italy, the event enables delegates to bring their own Vespas and go on tours wherever in Europe. Its first venture in Asia was in Bali, but as Covid-19 prevented many foreign delegates from participating, it created an idea that it can be held in Asia, so the Philippines made a bid for 2025.

“We can expect around 3,000 visitors besides local Vespa aficionados. We have plenty of Vespa clubs here and thousands more who own one or more Vespas,” Albaña revealed.

Presently, SMX has 8 convention centers in the country with a total of over 42,000 sqm of leasable space. SMX Manila was recently awarded as the Philippines’ Best Convention Center for 2022 at the World MICE Awards.

La Union’s way of the water

La Union entered the map of surfing competition by hosting the first 2023 World Surf League (WSL) Qualifying Series for Shortboard and Longboard last January 25.

In this Asian competition, men and women surfers from Indonesia, Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Thailand, Sweden, France and the Philippines competed for a week to get the precious points needed to qualify for the championship tour, equivalent to football’s World Cup (not the Olympics).

Being in the list of top surfing hubs in Asia, the waves of Urbiztondo beach in San Juan, La Union (LU) already earned a reputation as the ‘surfing capital of the north’. It has became a tourist attraction as waves here can reach up to 10 feet during the surf season. LU did not disappoint WSL participants and spectators alike at the surf break area and clean waves were plenty with very little rain.

The Philippines now has a big chance to make it big especially a Filipino surfer Rogelio “JR” Esquivel won the Longboard Qualifying Series, gaining 1,000 points for the win along with Natsumi

Taoka (Japan) while Ketut Agus (Indonesia) and Shino Matsuda (Japan) have claimed their victory for the Shortboard Qualifying Series 3,000 event.

“I started surfing when I was 6 yrs old,” Esquivel related. “This is a highlight of my career, my first time to win was during the SEA games, then now. I have

more chances of winning in the longboard because I lead the rankings now in Asia to qualify for the world tour.”

Surfing coach and organizer Luke Landrigan of San Juan Surf School and Resort stated, “We know that the Filipino surfer can make it in the world comps. When the other surfers come here to get points and they lose to our locals, that is proof. Our surfers need funding to travel abroad and get more experience. They carry our flag, and make people aware of our country. Competitions usually last two weeks so that is good for businesses in our town.”

He added, “We wanted to put up a stage for Filipino surfers to showcase their skills and talent in a more professionalized set-up. It started with the Philippines surfing championship tour, which ran for 3 years, 20172019. Competitions started before that but we are the ones who professionalized it with computerization, judging system, technical crew. We copied the WSL way with the help of our Indonesian friends. After the pandemic, the United Philippine Surfing Association now handles all national competitions.It is now the national sporting commission authority recognized by the PSC (Philippine Sports Commission) and POC (Philippine Olympic Committee). This is the first International competition held outside of Siargao. Siargao has always been the site of the comp for the past 27 years. The World Tour is held in 10 sites, though the Philippines is not yet included, we have potential.”

Michael Elija

Santos of

My Life On Board Enterprise explained to Travel Update Philippines that

Surfing professionals need points to win the challenger series. Unlike the Olympics, the accumulated points can earn the surfer the chance to go up to the Championship tour much like the World Cup of FIFA.

DOT Region 1 Director Joseph Francisco Ortega stated in his post-event speech that surfing has been instrumental in the growth of San Juan town and the province of La Union. It has been seeing a steady increase in popularity in the country. It took years before the world caught on about the surf-ready waves in this region as Siargao was the focus and gained more attention from international surfers.

“Surfing serves a niche market, so during the pandemic years, we trained surfing instructors from level 0 to level 1. That means all of our instructors are certified to teach surfing. They are certified to teach even abroad, these are qualifying standards even in Australia, Indonesia. We hope, with the direction of Sec. Frasco, other surfing locations in the Philippines will be opened and allocated for surf tourism.”

The 2023 WSL Qualifying Series (Asia) was organized by the United Philippine Surfing Association with big support from Next Gen and MVP Sports Foundation., DOT, and the La Union provincial government. The next international surfing event will be at Siargao in October, according to WSL Tour Manager Ty Sorati.

(Buddy G. Recio)

Photos

Cruise calls return

International cruise ships have resumed their call to Manila after 3 years due to the pandemic. They’re back in the tourism scene as they resume operations in different parts of the country starting February 9 when Seabourn Encore made calls to Puerto Princesa, Coron, Manila and Boracay carrying more than 500 guests from USA, UK, Germany, Australia and Canada, and 452 crew, in which 201 are Filipinos.

The Department of Tourism (DOT) stated that the anticipated 139 cruise calls signal the readiness of the Philippines to claim the position as one of the regional cruise centers in Asia.

DOT Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco made the pronouncement on Wednesday (15 February) as she welcomed 317 guests and 415 mix of Filipino and foreign crew aboard the luxurious Silver Spirit at the Eva Macapagal Super Terminal, Manila South Harbor in a show of support to the boosting cruise tourism industry in the Philippines.

Silver Spirit is a small luxury cruise ship of Silversea Cruises, which was recently acquired by Royal Caribbean International, but running independently. Silversea prides itself with a staffto-guest ratio of 1:1.

“The arrival of this cruise into the port of Manila signals the resurgence of the cruise tourism industry as it is one of the first cruise ships that has docked in the Philippines. This signals confidence as well in travel and tourism into the Philippines and we’re very grateful for the support of the City of Manila to open up its harbor to our visitors from all over the world and we’re hopeful that this arrival may signal many more in the years to come,” the tourism chief said.

Frasco also noted that the arrival of cruise ships is highly anticipated for the tourism industry this year expecting to receive 139 cruise calls, a 36.27% increase compared to 102 port visits made in 2019.

The Silver Spirit is the third cruise ship to arrive in the

country following the cruise calls of the Seabourn Encore and Silver Shadow with 320 passengers and 288 crew.

Meanwhile, in a phone interview with DOT Region 8 Director Karen Tiopes, she said the preparation of the first cruise call of Silver Shadow in Kalanggaman, Leyte (February 10), has been going on since last year.

“There was close coordination between Silversea representatives, the local suppliers, Palompon LGU and the DOT. After Silversea came up with the concept, local service providers and performers were chosen. Regular meetings were also done to ensure preparation progress. Kalanggaman was transformed into an island with a festive look. Palompon’s Lawig Festival was performed during the welcome and there were three stations on the island where continuous entertainment was provided,” Tiopes excitedly related.

“Cruise tourism is back. And it’s so amazing at how the different cruise destinations in the country will have numerous cruise calls. Cruise tourism not only brings in the foreign market to the country. It also attracts the attention of domestic tourists, changing their focus from popular to less travelled destinations—the choice of cruise companies, specially for expedition cruises,” she added.

According to Lou Banzon of

Sharp Travel, the ground handler of one of the luxury cruise ships, it takes one to two years to include a destination to a cruise itinerary.

“Especially on expedition cruises, these are mainly high-end cruisers with specific interests. They purchase pricey packages in order to satisfy their quests because it is an education for them. Unlike bigger ships who come with leisure tourists, expeditions are different,” Banzon explained.

This was aired by Sec. Frasco during an interview with the media, “Our vision is to make the Philippines an attractive and diverse cruise destination offering high levels of customer satisfaction and cost effective deployment for cruise lines operating from major home ports in Asia.”

Expedition cruises will start in June with Heritage Adventurer carrying 184 guests and 125 crew to visit Batanes, Currimao, Hundred Islands, Manila, Sibuyan Island, Ticao, Bohol and Bucas Grande. It will be followed by Coral Adventurer (120 guests, 48 crew) from October to November to do calls to Claveria (Cagayan), Calayan Island, Palaui Island, Polillo Island, Palumbanes, Virac, Capul, Biri, Maripipi, Sambawan, Babatngon/ Tacloban, Cuatros Islas, Bohol, Cebu, Natangco, Marinduque, Apo Reef, North Sibayan, Cresta De Gallo, Kalanggaman, Limasawa, Padre Burgos,

Sohoton Cave, Bucks Grande and Dako Island in Siargao.

Other notable big cruise ships to visit the Philippines are Royal Caribbean’s Spectrum of the Seas with 5,622 guests capacity, Holland America (1,964), P&O’s Arcadia (2,094), Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth (2,092), Carnival (2,826), Aida Cruises (2,050), Costa Serena (3,700), MSC Cruises (2,500) and Norwegian Cruise Line (2,376). While Small luxury ones are Swan Hellenic Minerva (152), Oceania Cruises (684), Hapag Lloyd’s Europa 516) and Hanseatic ( 230), Regent (750) and Windstar Cruises (312).

The expected Philippines cruise calls will visit 46 island destinations, including Manila, in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, with around 117,000 passengers arriving for Manila alone is estimated to rake in millions of dollars in revenues, according to Frasco.

She commented that Cruise visits not only affect the revenue flows for the industry but also the jobs of hundreds of thousands of Filipinos working in cruise ships. Filipino seafarers and tourism frontliners make up about fifty percent of the three cruise lines that have arrived in the country. It also results in raising the service standards of our local service providers, giving them new opportunities to earn and promote our culture and the Filipino brand of service.

INVESTMENT

Panglao Shores blooms

By Buddy G. Recio

The horizon is wide open for a profitable investment in Bohol. Altura’s Group of Companies started the ball rolling with a 57-hectare land area that will be seen as a game changer in sustainable tourism for the province. The development called Panglao Shores is a flagship project with the Tourism Infrastructure Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), under Altura’s subsidiary company, Panglao Bay Premiere Parks & Resorts Corp. (PBPPRC).

Panglao Shores promises to be a destination on its own with all the components of a mixed-use development and some. It is just 10 minutes away from the new Panglao International Airport.

The heart of the project will have a town square retail mall and night market, a vibrant hub of shopping, dining, entertainment with live performance areas, garden walkways and courtyards.This will be surrounded by facilities and amenities, commercial and retail spaces, residential villages, a convention center, co-working spaces, international hotels and resorts, and a beach club.

“We have an opportunity to develop it on our own," related Hope Marie Uy, managing director of South Palms Resort Panglao. "It has been 10 years now. 5 years ago, we planned out how we are going to develop our property. A family-run business with family values that we always instill in our hearts so we called it Panglao Shores development.

Uy related that they had traveled to see and use ideas. They went to Bali, Phuket, Boracay, Palawan, Cebu. Ultimately, they found that it is only in Bohol that they will get the inspiration as it is not just the beach with the culture of Bohol, not just palm trees, but the community because their neighbors are very important to them.

“We were very inspired by local materials. We went around Bohol to source this beautiful architectural material. We have these clay bricks, we have, of course, the old houses where we used the many tin roofs. We started with us planting ornamental plants to be able to supply our developments. So our goal here is to supply the development with 100% Bohol sourced plants reducing any carbon footprint of shipping items to Bohol because we have a beautiful landscape here. So everything is just found in Bohol and that we know will flourish here as well,” Uy added.

In the masterplan, this 25-billion peso project will have 37,000 square meters

commercial area, a medical facility, a town square, 6 branded hotels and resorts, all set in the 1 kilometer beachfront. Panglao Shores is about engagement with the community, not just with tourists. 500 residential units are planned in the future. The structures will only allow four-storey buildings. It will also have a port for cargo and cruise ships.

“That's really important because it's lower density, it's not managed to take away the views and to enjoy the aspect of the view of the ocean as well,” said Uy. “We have a 700-meter green belt within the development where you can just lounge, exercise, and just have fun ,” she added.

According to Bill Burnett of C9 Hotelworks, the major consultant of the project, Panglao Shores will be a generational business meaning it will last for generations, sustainable because energy saving measures are built into the project.

The Uy family are into a lot of businesses. The chairman and patriarch owns The Alturas Group of Companies composed of Marcela Farms, Alturas Supermarket Corporation, Island City Mall in Tagbilaran, South Palms Resort Panglao, South Farm, Leonardo Distributors Inc., Bohol Tech Vocational, Inc. and North Zen Villas, Panglao, among others. The company also produces the famous Peanut Kisses, a famous delicacy In Bohol.

The South Farm is a 9-hectare organic land property that is committed to sustainability. It has organic, herbal, and medical gardens; a Fisherman’s Village where shrimp, tilapia, and bangus

are cultivated to supply the property and nearby communities; and, the Artist’s village where the Boholano’s artistry and craft making such as clay-making, basket weaving, and coco products like oil, vinegar are showcased.

“My father is a farmer and he actually raises livestock as well. So currently, we supply almost 50% of our products that are based in Bohol and 20% are coming from South Farm now. So it's, again, saving the environment. That's your carbon footprint. We've tried to inspire with South Farm to inspire the cuisine which will be in the hotel, and again, for that maybe the menu is not the same every day. Maybe you don't get the same fruits because what's in season, what's available then, is what they'll use and regenerate. I think that's so important in terms of our content with the new hotel, but also to show others that you don't need to be a cookie cutter. Everything doesn't necessarily have to have the same menu every day. It can change and you can use products from all products raised here. That's also good for the environment as well,” Uy stated.

On the part of TIEZA, Atty. Karen Sarinas Baydo stated that, “Being a publicprivate partnership project, Panglao Shores investors like hotels will benefit from fiscal and non-fiscal tax incentives. We can also bring them and market them for investors or operators roadshows here and abroad apart from the standard mandate such infrastructure support and full range of TIEZA’s incentives we give based on our master plan.”

Presently, the 188-keys South Palms Resort is currently underway with a target completion in 2024. It will carry an international brand. The South Palms Resort development signals the acceleration of tourism in terms of contribution to the economy and creating jobs as well.

Uy said that as poverty is a problem in Bohol, Panglao Shores will be a contributor to the economy. Many jobs will be generated, and the trickle down effect to nearby provinces is a possibility.

Panglao Shores Managing Director Hope Uy onstage with Atty. Karen Sarinas Baydo of TIEZA, and C9 Hotelworks’ Bill Burnett

The Alturas family at the press launch

MGBX IS MICE READY!

MGBX is designed for the specific requirements of exhibitions and conferences. A 4,400sqm convention space that can host as much as 4,800 people at a given time. Comprise of a large pre-function area, three convention halls, and two meeting rooms.

LEVEL B1, MARRIOTT GRAND BALLROOM MARRIOTT HOTEL MANILA, 2 RESORTS DRIVE, PASAY CITY, MANILA 1309 PHILIPPINES