It's been three years since my last visit. For the 2nd time, we stayed in Discovery Shores Boracay, one of the best hotels in Boracay.
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| Discovery Shores Boracay taken March 24, 2018 |
Still the same, Boracay remains beautiful and relaxing, I'm referring to station 1 though particularly in Discovery Shores Boracay area. We did not explore far areas like station 3 but was able to visit nearby establishments in stations 1 and 2. Sad to see those businesses who clearly violated the required distance from the shoreline. The famous Jonah's milkshake, beach front closes on March 27 but I believe they still have another branch along the road so you can still grab your favorite milkshake.
It breaks my heart with the news, closing Boracay for rehabilitation. I was hoping that the government would only close establishments who violated the law in terms of distance to the shoreline and structure.
The Department of Tourism (DOT) here is looking forward to see Boracay Island as a “premium destination” after its rehabilitation.
Lawyer Helen J. Catalbas, DOT-Western Visayas regional director, said during a media briefing on “Oplan Save Boracay”
“I envision Boracay to be a premium destination after it is closed, and then rehabilitated and opened big time to the world tourism community. It is going to be a destination that has the class that the world expects from the best island in the world”.
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| Boracay Sunset |
In 2017, Tourism receipts reveal Boracay earned P56 billion from the 2,001,974 tourists who visited the island paradise. She noted that should the President approve the recommendation of an inter-agency committee to close Boracay, the world-class resort island for a year does not mean it will no longer accept tourists.“It’s not totally closed to tourists, but we should inform them that they should not expect Boracay to be really orderly when they arrive,” Catalbas added.
DOT will handle how tourism “will go on or not go on” once the closure is implemented. “The full scale closure is not feasible and I don’t think that it is the intention of the DOT,” Catalbas said. Once the closure is approved, violators would be closed down but compliant establishments will continue to operate", she added.
The Department of Labor and Employment has said it is ready to assist workers who would be displaced through its package of services like job facilitation, livelihood and emergency employment and skills upgrading and retooling with the support of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).
DOLE Regional Director Johnson Cañete said two job fairs will be held on April 26 and June 15 in Kalibo and Malay, respectively.
Boracay last year contributed 34 percent of the total tourist arrivals in Western Visayas and almost one to six million foreign tourists in the country.
“Sustainability development goes beyond the monetary side. That is for the long term,” Catalbas said.
No doubt, Boracay will remain one of the top tourist destinations in the Philippines especially after its rehabilitation. Its fine white sands, clear blue water, and many beach activities will continue to attract tourists both local and foreign even after its temporary closure. For the meantime, The Philippines has over 7,000 islands boasting white sand and beautiful beaches, they are just waiting to be discovered.
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