Poland's leading daily Rzeczpospolita posted a feature article titled "It's More Fun in the Philippines in its online edition, Turystyka.rp.pl last June 2013. It was written by Ms. Anna Klossowska who attended the joint tourism presentation held by the Philippine Embassy in Warsaw, together with Emirates Airlines and the Polish Chamber of Tourism at the Sheraton-Warsaw.
Following is the English translation of the entire article:
"It's More Fun In The Philippines"
"The Chocolate Hills and sandy beaches to laze around, the Mayon Volcano and water rafting for the active- these are offers of the Philippines which has started an activer tourism promotion in Poland. And the Emirates Airlines offer convenient connections.
A convenient connection by the Emirates Airlines between Warsaw and Manila via Dubai, introduction of a new connection to Clark, no visas (for a 21-day stay) and, first of all an ambitious media campaign being run at present in Poland which may result in the Philippines becoming a new, interesting destination.
Our promotional campaign titled "It's More Fun in the Philippines" was officially started at the Summer Fair Warsaw - says Ms. Patricia Ann V. Paez, Ambassador of the Republic of the Philippines in Poland during her conversation with Turystika.rp.pl. After our presentations in Warsaw, on which we mainly count now, next year, we plan to make a tour of some other cities in Poland.
The Madam Ambassador has been in Poland since January. She vigorously tries to bring her country closer to the Poles. She has been learning Polish together with a whole team of the Diplomatic Mission. During the presentation organized in the Warsaw Sheraton, she addressed the invited otur operators in Polish. The presentation included some dynamic short films shot in the American style. The first of them showed the country in a nutshell. The country is made up of 7.107 islands, 880 of which are inhabited, scattered in the Southeast Asia on the Pacific Ocean. The country has the fourth longest coastline in the world of 36 thousand kilometers full of sandy, nearly white beaches.
The Philippines with an estimated 92 million inhabitants is at the 12th place among the most populated states of the world. Manila is the capital of the country and Quezon City, Davao, Caloocan, Cebu, Tarlac , Iloilo , Bacolod and Zamboanga are some bigger cities. Although Filipino is the official language, English is also common. The temperature oscillates between 25 and 32°C.
- We have five sites included in the list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites - Cecille Joyce Y. Lao, a Vice-Consul of the Philippines tells us. These include the rice terraces in Banaue, Tubbataha Reef National Park, four baroque churches - in Manila, Santa Maria, Pacai and Vigan.
The Philippines also promotes also its wonders of nature such as the Chocolate Hills formed of limestone which are located in the Bohol island and also famous for its sandy beaches, tropical rain forests and amusement parks. The Mayon volcano on the island of Luzon is another attraction. It has the most perfect cone in the world and at the same time it is the most active volcano in the Philippines (which was not mentioned during the presentation). The last eruption , which took place a month ago, killed four tourists, together with their guide.
A promotional strategy of the Philippines consists of proving that it offers a variety of options. On one hand, one can relax on sandy beaches and in the first class spas; and on the other hand, one can combine relaxation with active sports such as yachting and diving, not only among coral reefs, but also in caverns, in rafting, in hot air balloon flights, and trekking. A cultural offer is also very rich - local holidays and festivals, such as the Sinulog Festival, bright colourful , historical religious holidays in the city of Cebu, which is the capital of the island of the same name, during which its participants throw paint at one another. The whole tourist offering is completed with a full original taste of Asiatic cuisine, which is more and more liked by the Poles .
"I like this offer, because my customers will be satisfied with it, " says Maria /illegible surname/ from OBP Incentive & Sports Travel, nota bene the only agent in Poland of the reputed football clubs: Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, and in charge of organizing trips to their matches. Such kind of customer requires more integrated offers - relaxing in the sun and on a beach combined adequately with some amusement and the possibility of practicing some extreme sports. Seven days is the maximum time for such trip. At present Thailand is very popular with us, the same as Malaysia and Dubai, but the Philippines may be another desired alternative in the future, especially since they have a very high-level hotel base.
There are 21 hotel networks operating on the islands, including the most renowned world ones: Shangri-La Hotels, Best Western, Crowne Plaza, Dusit International, Holiday Inn, Hyatt Hotels, Intercontinental Hotels, Mandarin Oriental, Marriott Hotels & Resorts, Moevenpick Hotels & Resort, Radisson Blu Hotels & Resorts or Sofitel Luxury Hotels. There are 15, 567 hotel rooms, in which: 8887 are of the de luxe category; 1332 the first class; 4423 in a standard version; and 925 economy ones wait for tourists in the territory of Metro Manila (i.e. the capital with adjacent towns districts).
Unfortunately, there is no general data available concerning the hotel base in the territory of the whole country. There is, however, a list of 20 most luxurious resorts. It begins with Amanpulo Resort with its offer for "the elites" and especially for newlyweds. A price is from 900 up to 5500 Dollars per cottage for 3-7 days depending on a season. One can choose among 40 casitas or bungalows situated in four •lines beginning with those closest to the water up to those beyond the line of trees surrounding the beach with so-called "undisturbed view". Guests are transported to that place by a private plane.
"I can see here a future market," Krzysztof Goralczyk, the President of Sports - Tourists, sums up the presentation. "I have already been to the Philippines. I think that not only individual tourists but also groups will go there. Besides, this is a Catholic country, which is additionally important for us, because of a possibility to prepare an offer for a specific customer. And most important , we do not need visas anymore and a flight is more comfortable and faster now," he adds .
Olga Walas from Top Travel, who has been sending her customers to the Philippines for four years, agrees with this. "The connection offered by the Emirates Airlines is really good and their prices are favourable." They are around 3 700-3 800 PLN for an individual customer.
The Emirates, present at the tourism presentation, offers flights from Warsaw to Manila via Dubai and they have also started new ones to Clark - with a stopover in Dubai. "It does not take long to wait for a connection," explains Maciej Pyrka, the manager of the Emirates Airlines in Poland. "Flying to Manila we have to wait four hours in Dubai and three hours during a return flight; while flying to Clark - four hours. The stopover is longer during the return flight. It takes seven hours but for passengers with improved economy class tickets and higher class tickets there is an option of a night in a hotel," he explains.
Hotel investments planned in the Philippines
Metro Manila
2013:
Marco Polo Hotel- 233 rooms
Belle Grande Manila- 1000 rooms
Seda Abreeza - 186 rooms
Tune Hotels - 14 7 rooms
Mandarin Plaza Hotel Cebu- 200 rooms
Summit Shores Mactan - 200 rooms
2014:
Citadines - 220 rooms
Ascott- 20 rooms
Novotel - 401 rooms
2015:
Moevenpick Hotel and Residences- 304 rooms and 250 residences
Shell Sea-side Urban Residences - 400 rooms
Grand Hyatt Hotel (Fort) - 43 8 rooms
Shangri-la Hotels and Resorts (Fort)- 500 rooms and 97 residences
Crimson Resort and Spa Boracay - 200 rooms
The Savoy Hotel - 500 rooms
2016:
The Savoy Hotel - 610 rooms
Westin Manila Bay Shore - 600 rooms
2017:
Sheraton Manila- 350 rooms
Cebu
2013:
Mandarin Plaza Hotel Cebu - 200 rooms
Summit Shores Mactan - 200 rooms
Davao
2013:
Seda Abreeza - 186 rooms
Tune Hotels - 147 rooms
Boracay
2015:
Crimson Resort and Spa Boracay - 200 rooms
2016:
The Savoy Hotel - 500 rooms
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