DAVAO CITY—Davao City is set to participate in one of the major tourism expos in the country, the Philippine Travel Mart early next month.
City Tourism Operations Office Chief Generose Tecson said the local government will promote everything that Davao has to offer tourists at the PTM slated September 2-4.
Tecson said they will also highlight Kadayawan sa Dabaw, which is dubbed as the ‘Festival of Festivals’ to encourage tourists and prospective visitors to prepare for the 32nd Kadayawan celebration next year.
She said they have invited personalities from the private sector to join the city government in the biggest travel trade exhibition that gathers tourism players from all over the country.
Now on its 27th year, PTM will be held on Seashell Lane, Mall of Asia Complex in Pasay City.
“Davao City will have its own pavilion and will be setting up a booth at the event,” she added.
Meanwhile, the CTOO is gearing for the development of community-based tourism aimed at promoting the different cultures of the city’s 11 tribes.
“Tourism is not all about putting up hotels, resorts,” she said. “It is also about [promoting] our culture.”
Tecson said this will be CTOO’s contribution to the realization of the 10-point priority agenda of Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio.
“We would like these sites to be not just tourist spots, but places that people and tourists can learn from,” she added.
The community-based tourism program, Tecson said, also aims to discover more hidden tourism destinations in the city.
She will be meeting with various barangay leaders and deputy mayors for the implementation of the said program.
“I intend to talk to them and explain what tourism and community-based tourism are all about, and ask them to help the city in identifying destinations and recreations that would help boost Davao’s tourism in their respective communities,” Tecson said.
She added that her team already talked to different tribes in the city to help it find the hidden beauties of Davao.