Every time I visit a city, I always take advantage of its Hop On-Hop Off facility. Not only is it convenient, but it’s also very affordable and makes it easy for me to see the different attractions of the destination.
Many big cities abroad, like London, New York, Singapore, Madrid, Buenos Aires, etc., offer this service to tourists, and it’s probably one of the reasons why they have such enviable visitor arrival figures.
It’s been a long time since we, the industry stakeholders, have proposed to both the local governments and to the Department of Tourism a similar tourist facility that would make it convenient for tourists to see as much of our metropolis and savor the best of the Filipino.
As if in answer to our prayers, the Makati City government tied up with the Department of Tourism (DOT)-NCR to launch the very first Hop On-Hop Off (HoHo) sightseeing bus tour around the major sites of the city. This longed-for tourist shuttle system, a handiwork of Positive Exposure Productions Inc., a local Marketing company, is available from Wednesday to Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and may be booked through a mobile app.
The bus route covers the city’s heritage spots, shopping malls, parks, and museums allowing tourists to have a closer look at what the city has to offer.
The newly launched bus tour, currently starts at Glorietta 2 and ends in the Ayala Triangle, making six stops along the way – Washington Sycip Park in Legaspi Village, RCBC Plaza at the corner of Ayala and Gil Puyat Avenues, Circuit Makati, Century City, Museo ng Makati, and Rockwell Center.
At a very affordable price of P990 for a One Day Pass, this new tourist shuttle service makes the city’s wealth of arts, culture, entertainment, and food easily accessible to visitors. Of course, the DOT plans to make this HoHo Service available also in Manila and in the other cities of the metropolis and, eventually, in the major cities of the country. The planned stops in Manila are Intramuros, Binondo, Escolta, Jones Bridge, National Museum, City Hall, Luneta, Malate, Raja Sulaiman Plaza, Cultural Center of the Philippines, and Star City.
This service is available not just for international and domestic tourists but also for local residents who want to explore the city. Makati City residents get 40 percent discount on the Makati HoHo route. Once the Manila run is operating, I’m sure Manila residents will also have the same discount privilege.
To ensure accuracy of the information dished out to visitors, a DOT team is assigned at each stop. Visitors may also choose to avail of private guided tours which, of course, is a separate cost. All bookings may be made through the new website which the DOT is now crafting for this purpose. The app will also enable tourists to explore the city on their own and provide them the information on each location visited.
I’m glad our Local Government Units and DOT are working hand-in-hand to make it easy for our visitors to savor the unique charm of our country, and this HoHo service is one way to do it. I know I share the sentiments of our Industry’s stakeholders when I say that our Tourism Industry is definitely on its way to recover our pre-pandemic arrival statistics. It looks like we’ll get there by the time we hear that fat red-and-white fellow belting out a loud “HoHo.”
YOUR MONDAY CHUCKLE:
Randy Pausch is a renowned computer science professor, but that didn’t carry much weight with his mother. After he got his PhD, the mother introduced him to friends by saying, “This is my son. He’s a doctor, but not the kind who helps people.”
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