The Philippine Tour Operators Association or PHILTOA is a non-stock, non-profit organization of tour operators, travel agencies, hotels, resorts, transportation companies, and handicraft stores actively involved in promoting our country not only to the rest of the world but also to our domestic travelers.
It recently hosted at the SMX Convention Center the 35th edition of the highly popular Philippine Travel Mart (PTM), the longest-running Travel and Tourism exposition in the country. More than 300 exhibitors from all of the country’s administrative regions filled the cavernous halls of the convention center.
Our country’s tourist attractions took center stage in this 3-day event, with the theme “Next Gen Tourism,” as each of the administrative region’s booths displayed a very attractive depiction of its local culture and traditions. Guests had the chance to immerse themselves in what the locals of that region experience day-to-day, as the various booths offered things that delightfully fed their five senses – sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste.
Of course, I was attracted by the familiar aroma, so I immediately lined up for the delicious lechon offered by the booth of Iligan City. Camiguin had an abundance of ever-so-sweet lanzones for everybody to taste. The Soccksargen booth displayed so many interesting items that made guests stay longer to peruse its “treasures.” When I passed by the Cotabato booth, I got carried away by the melodious sound of the kulintang which the transported natives played non-stop skillfully.
The Cordillera ladies bannered their colorful weaves which were available for sale, and the attractive T’Boli bead necklaces of South Cotabato had fashion-conscious guests clamoring for more designs and color combinations. The Eastern Visayas booth had a very attractive gazebo-like front that featured the attractions of Samar and Biliran. The booth of MIMAROPA (Occidental and Oriental Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, and Palawan) had beautiful abaca lanterns all over, further elevating the quality of display booths in our country’s various travel expos.
The PTM is a major factor in our efforts to drum up more domestic tourists, just in case we fall short of our targeted international arrivals. As in the past many years, tourism revenue from our domestic tourists is approximately 85 percent of our total tourism earnings, which is why our Department of Tourism is fully supportive of this travel expo.
Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, in her keynote address, praised the PTM as a prime mover for the significant growth of our Tourism Industry through the years. She also cited the many awards our country won in the World Travel Awards held a few days before the PTM.
The awards we received were – Asia’s Leading Dive Destination, Asia’s Leading Beach Destination, Asia’s Leading Island Destination, Asia’s Leading Tourist Attraction (Intramuros), Asia’s Leading Luxury Island Destination (Boracay), and Asia’s Leading Wedding Destination (Cebu).
Secretary Frasco herself also won an award for her “transformational leadership in tourism” and DOT’s “Love The Philippines” slogan won as “Asia’s Leading Marketing Campaign.”
For his part, PHILTOA President Arjun Shroff, in his Welcome Remarks, enjoined our tourism industry’s stakeholders to “use the PTM as a platform for showcasing the best of our 7641 islands.” This year’s edition had a great response from the visitors who were attracted by the offerings of the various exhibitors.
It is such a joy for us in the Tourism Industry to showcase our country because there is so much to show off to our visitors…and PHILTOA’s Philippine Travel Mart always leads the way!
For feedback, I’m at bobzozobrado@gmail.com
