By Erwin Nicavera/PNA
BACOLOD CITY — Negros Occidental, including this city, registered 1.76 million in tourist arrivals by end of December 2018, a 2 percent increase compared to the 2017 figures.
Cristine Mansinares, provincial supervising tourism operations officer, on Tuesday said various conventions and similar events hosted by the city and the province largely contributed to the growth.
In 2017, the total tourist arrivals in Negros Occidental only reached 1.72 million.
Mansinares said the provincial government’s nature-based tourism that attracted more crowd, and the strengthened marketing and promotion efforts with stakeholders also helped boost the number of visitors last year.
“Nature-based tourism products that we offered included beaches, mountain resorts, diving and snorkeling sites as well as trekking areas,” she added.
As part of its marketing and promotion initiatives, Negros Occidental has been actively participating in key travel fairs and business missions and hosting familiarization tours for local and international media and tour operators in events like Panaad sa Negros Festival and other festivals of local government units, she said.
The provincial government also cited the support of local bloggers in promoting the tourism industry, she said.
Mansinares noted that the tourist arrival figures accounted for overnight visitors only, which means these are on top of the day visitors coming to Negros Occidental and Bacolod City.
Figures from the Negros Occidental Tourism Division (NOTD) showed that the province catered to 3.19 million day tourists last year, which is 17 percent higher than the 2.74 million day visitors in 2017.
For foreign tourists, the top 10 markets are the United States with 16,362 arrivals; Korea, 16,048; Japan, 8,021; Russia, 6,629; Australia, 5,636; China, 4,913; Canada, 4,744; Germany, 4,264; the United Kingdom, 2,223; and India, 1,896.
Meanwhile, the top 10 contributing LGUs are Bacolod City, Sipalay City, Murcia, Kabankalan City, San Carlos City, Cadiz City, Talisay City, Bago City, Escalante City, and Silay City.
Mansinares said the province has a total of 293 accommodation establishments with 5,853 rooms, providing direct employment to 3,694 Negrenses.
In the 2016 Household Survey on Domestic Visitors released by the Philippine Statistics Authority and DOT in mid-2017, Negros Occidental was the second most visited place in the country by Filipino domestic travelers, behind the National Capital Region.
