AMID COVID-19 THREAT

THE province again lost another opportunity to host foreign tourists when the Alaminos City government decided not to allow another foreign cruise ship to dock in Hundred Islands amid the COVID-19 threat.

Mike Sison, city tourism officer, said the cruise ship from Europe that sailed from Hong Kong was supposed to dock in the city on March 10.

He said it is the second time that a foreign cruise ship was not allowed to dock in the city to give passengers a chance to tour the scenic Hundred Islands on account of the COVID scare.

“The first one was a scheduled arrival on Feb 6 for a day at the islands for some water sports activities,” Sison said.

“This is another potential revenue lost to the city as travel agencies pay P100,000 for the exclusive use of the Quezon Island for 6 hours,“ he said.

Cruise passengers normally opt to dive, swim and sunbathe at the pristine waters and white sand beaches when they dock at the Quezon Island. They also do island hopping, water sports activities like riding zipline, kayaking, among others.

While tourism in the Philippines has began to suffer due to COVID, he said the Hundred Islands continue to be visited by both domestic and foreign tourists during weekends averaging more than 2,000”, Sison said.

There are also no reported cancellations of bookings in hotels and resorts here yet, he also said.

Meanwhile, Sison said Mayor Arth Bryan Celeste has issued an executive order postponing the holding of the much-awaited Hundred Islands Festival 2020 held usually from March 19-29. It has been reset tentatively on May 1-9.

“But this is not yet final because everything depends on the progress about COVID-2019,” Sison said. (PhilStar Wire Service/ECV)

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