DAVAO CITY”•The City Council’s Committee on Tourism aims to surpass the city’s two-million tourist arrivals posted in 2017 with various measures and more events slated this year.
Councilor Al-Ryan Alejandre, tourism committee chairman, said Wednesday there is a big chance Davao can surpass the number with a series of big events in the next few months.
In February, the city will celebrate the Chinese New Year together with the China Town Council that will attract foreign and local tourists to the city, the councilor said.
“We will also have the Ironman 70.3 challenge this March 25, we can expect a huge group of tourists through this event,” Alejandre said.
As of Jan. 13, the number of participants for the 1st Ironman Challenge here has ballooned to 1,800. The race will start in Davao and end in Tagum City.
Alejandre said that with the remaining weeks of registration, the number of participants can still reach 2,000, while the number of visiting tourists can triple at that time.
“We will also celebrate the 81st Araw ng Davao this March, so can really expect a big number of tourists. We are also looking at ways how we can control the traffic congestion through these days,” he said.
The city is also preparing for the month-long Visit Davao Fun Sale this summer and the 33rd Kadayawan festival.
As the city prepares for the big events, the councilor said his committee is trying to strengthen the city’s tourism code to attract more tourists.
The committee is also trying to see how authorities can monitor unregistered foreign tourists without violating their right to privacy.
“The hotels are already getting their information, what we do not have are the information of those who use the back door entry. We want them to know that we are not just doing this for us, but also for their own safety,” Alejandre said.