Alvin M. Keeling 
THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS. Central Visayas is not just a home for warm and hospitable Filipinos. It is also home to various outdoor tourism sites that tourists, foreign and local alike, will surely want to rediscover and relive again and again. / ITEM 7
THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS. Central Visayas is not just a home for warm and hospitable Filipinos. It is also home to various outdoor tourism sites that tourists, foreign and local alike, will surely want to rediscover and relive again and again. / ITEM 7
TOURIST destinations in Central Visayas are now ready to accept local and international tourists after the devastation caused by the Coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic and Typhoon Odette.
This was stated by Shalimar Tamano, Director of Department of Tourism (DOT) 7 during the presentation of tourism products on Friday, February 18, 2022.
Tamano said Central Visayas will focus more on offering outdoor activities such as hiking, rock climbing, kayaking, paddleboarding, scuba diving, mountain biking, canyoning and more. ‘others.
During the show, tourism officers from the cities of Cebu, Lapu-Lapu and the provinces of Cebu, Negros Oriental and Bohol, also presented the activities and products that their localities can offer tourists.
In Cebu City, Jocelyn Pesquera, a tourism officer and now city councilor, highlighted the “highland flowers” and ecotourism that characterize the various flower gardens in the city’s mountain barangays.
Pesquera added that the city will now introduce heritage tours not only for Spanish, but also for American, Japanese and Chinese heritage and influences in Cebu City.
Lapu-Lapu City Tourism Officer John Kristoffer Rafols said their city plans to offer its historical and cultural landmarks as well as diving and island-hopping activities for tourists.
There are now 17 boat operators in the city that have resumed operations after the typhoon hit.
However, some resorts and hotels in the city have not yet been able to open as power to parts of the city has yet to be fully restored.
For Bohol, around 247 hotels and accommodations are now serving customers as electricity and water supplies are now stable.
Bohol Provincial Tourism Officer Joanne Pinat said that during the lockdown, the province improved its infrastructure such as airports, seaports and health facilities.
Faith-based tourism is the one that is concentrated in the province, where visitors will have the chance to visit three Marian churches and heritage churches, Tamano said.
Tamano added that Bohol also aspires to be the first to receive the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) Global Geoparks in the country.
A Unesco Global Geoparks are unique and unified geographical areas where sites and landscapes of international geological significance are managed with a holistic concept of protection, education and sustainable development.
Tourism Officer April Joy Lamis from the Negros Oriental Province featured astral photography and motorcycling activities as one of the many good things the province has to offer.
Lamis also featured other activities such as caving, whale watching, scuba diving, snorkeling, boating, extreme mountaineering and bird watching.
Tamano expressed his gratitude to the various business leaders across the region who have worked hard for the reopening of the various tourist spots.
The regional manager added that security is one of the products that Central Visayas can offer its tourists, especially with the continued threats of the pandemic.
Tamano said tourist destinations in the region have received DOT security seals and have complied with government guidelines.
