Updated April 03, 2009 12:00 AM
CEBU, Philippines - People nowadays still find time to travel even if times are hard in the face of a global economic downturn.
This was learned by city and municipal tourism officers in Central Visayas from hospitality industry expert Marco Protacio in a briefing conducted by the Department of Tourism-7.
Protacio, general manager of the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino and also the president of the Hotel, Resort and Restaurant Association of Cebu, said that the current scenario is that in time of economic downturn, there is less spending power for consumers.
He also said that crisis will spur negative effects on the factors that drive tourism as travelers would have the tendency to hold back on spending and that less money would be set aside for vacations.
If worst comes to worst, Protacio said that the effects of the current situation on tourism and travel would be the closure of hotels, layoffs of personnel, decrease in occupancy, financial troubles and closure of airlines, downgrading of facilities and decrease in the number of flights and travel destinations.
Further, he said that consumer behavior is also affected such as the preference of lower budget hotels, preference for cheaper dining options, and preference for lower budget trips and means of travel.
However, Protacio said that Central Visayas still makes the most of the advantages because “tourists can stretch their money while they’re here.”
He also presented some solutions and adjustments such as focusing on new and different markets like medical tourism; being more creative and emphasizing on high quality and low cost; revisiting the idea of local tourism and creating variety of options for local and international tourists.
“Tourism is still referred to as the sunshine industry here,” Protacio added. — Gregg M. Rubio/MEEV (THE FREEMAN)
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