Tourism officials announced the Visayas Leg of the Island Paradise Adventure Race (IPAR), the biggest adventure race ever in the Philippines, in terms of prize money and number of destinations.

In keeping with the adventure racing trend popularized by reality television shows such as The Amazing Race, the Department of Tourism saw the opportunity to promote the Philippines as an adventure tourism destination. The country’s diversity offers a wide range of exciting and unique experiences to jaded travelers who are looking for something out of the ordinary, and the IPAR program is set to showcase these unique destinations.

The Visayas Leg, set to run for 9 days from December 10-18, 2005, will take the participants from Manila through the southern Luzon provinces of Laguna, Batangas and Puerto Gallera then cross over Mindoro down to Boracay, Capiz and Iloilo, crossing the Guimaras strait through Negros to Bohol, finally finishing in Cebu. In all, the teams are expected to stop at around 50 destinations where they will perform challenges highlighting the local attractions. Since this is an inter-island adventure, teams are expected to traverse the Strong Republic Nautical Highway using the RO-RO shipping facilities, which are still something of a novelty.

According to Tourism Secretary Ace Durano, “IPAR is our way of positioning the Philippines as an ideal tourism destination, particularly for adventure enthusiasts as we believe our 7,100 islands have something to appeal to everyone. For the long term, we hope the IPAR program will be institutionalized as an ongoing tourism program, which will attract not only local but foreign adventure enthusiasts as well.”

Unlike other adventure sports activities which are limited to adventure or extreme sports enthusiasts, tourism officials insist that the IPAR Visayas Leg is open to everyone interested in traveling across the Visayas and discovering the natural beauty, local traditions, and cultural offerings. Of course, competitors have to be physically and mentally fit for the rigors and challenges of a cross-country trek.

The Island Paradise Adventure Race - Visayas Leg is open to teams consisting of 2 members, who should be at least 18 years of age. One million pesos is at stake for the winning team. The second and third place finishers will be taking home P200,000 and P100,000 in prize money, respectively. The contest organizers are targeting at least 30 participating teams.


Courtesy of:
WOW Philippinwa [http://www.wowphilippines.ph]

Pagyaya Food Festival Goes to Sulo Hotel Tuesday, September 27, 2005

The Department of Tourism (DOT) Cagayan Valley Region brings to Sulo Hotel this year’s Pagyaya Food Festival dubbed as Pistang Sulo slated on October 3 to 14, 2005.

Tourism Secretary Ace Durano expressed, “This is yet another event that proves how rich our cultural heritage is. Apart from our beaches and other tourist spots, we also have fine cuisines to cater to everyone.”

According to Senior Tourism Officer Josie Mallabo, the 12-day food fest will feature Ibanag, Ilocano, and Itawes dishes, which will be cooked by Ibanag chefs Luis Hipolito and Hilda Lipana.

Native dishes fried mori, baked caggu, carabeef tapa, sinigang na Purung, kalderetang kazzing, dinakdakan, ginisa nga agurung, inabraw, pancit, sinanta, steamed purong, bebengka nga nanna, bebengka nga deko, Lallo and Alcala milk candy, peanut candy, binallay, and a lot more will be served at the Pistang Sulo at Café Paraiso.

To support the Pagyaya Food Fest, Lolita’s Handicrafts of Santa Fe, Nueva Vizcaya will sell rattan crafts, native delicacies, and preserved foods from the province during the affair.

Cagayan Region Tourism Director Blessida Diwa added that in line with the occasion, the image of the Our Lady of Piat will be enthroned at the hotel. A mass has been scheduled at 10 o’clock in the morning of Sunday, October 2. The said image will be housed at Sulo Hotel until October 6 before it is transferred to Clamshell I at Intramuros, Manila for similar event.

A fee of Php430.50 for lunch and Php325.00 for dinner will guarantee the guests a taste of the Cagayan Region’s sumptuous cuisine.

Sulo Hotel is located at Matalino Road, Diliman, Quezon, City.

DOT Joins the Otdykh Leisure Trade Fair 2005 in RussiaFriday, September 23, 2005

Bullish to get a greater share of the out-bound tourists from Russia, the
Department of Tourism (DOT) has sent a marketing team to represent the Philippines in the ongoing 11th Otdykh-Leisure International Autumn Trade Fair in Russia, which officially opened last September 21, 2005.

Leisure Otdykh, which is participated in by 930 exhibitors, is the largest international autumn trade fair for tourism in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). It is the best platform to arrange business, as far as these European nations are concerned.

Tourism Secretary Ace Durano said, “Russia has now become one of our emerging global markets, and joining this trade fair is a good channel for us to strengthen our promotions for the Russian travelers.”

Headed by Tourism Assistant Secretary for Planning and Promotions Eduardo Jarque, Jr., together with local tour operators and media representatives, the DOT contingent is set to meet with direct buyers during the four-day sales blitz.

The travel and trade show features the entire tourism products ­ from city tours, winter holidays, winter-sun and long distance destinations, to adventure and safari tours, wellness and educational holidays. With a total population of 27.8 million, the Russian Federation and the CIS are among the most promising markets in Europe.

“Them, being the world’s top spender on international tourism, it is but appropriate for us to involve ourselves in the Leisure Otdykh Trade Fair to create a niche for Philippine tourism in their country. Russians have been consistently registering 19 million outbound travelers per year, mainly due to pent-up demand after 70 years of travel restriction,” explained Durano.

Moreover, according to the recent official statistics of the DOT, an average increase of 154.2% in growth rate has been registered by Russian visitor arrivals in the Philippines since January of this year. “The long winter in Russia is another good reason for us to intensify our
campaigns. With our tropical climate, they will be enticed to travel here in the Islands and for them experience spending our holiday season,” Secretary Durano asserted.

Meanwhile, international airlines such as Emirates, Qatar, and Korean have also been valuable in improving Philippines’ operations. The companies are now launching their flights to Russia, which will certainly bring new opportunities for Philippine tourism in terms of accessibility.

Qatar Airways sponsored the Philippine delegation to the Leisure Otdykh 2005.

Courtesy of:
Philippine Tourism [http://www.tourism.gov.ph]