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BORACAY (December 25, 2006) - Most hotels in this resort island reported full occupancy rates during the Christmas holiday, just two weeks after typhoon Seniang, internationally known as Utor, left a trail of destruction on the island and the province of Aklan. ![]()
BORACAY (December 25, 2006) - Most hotels in this resort island reported full occupancy rates during the Christmas holiday, just two weeks after typhoon Seniang, internationally known as Utor, left a trail of destruction on the island and the province of Aklan.
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"Tourism is good this year despite the typhoons," said Judith Icotanim, the officer in charge at the Department of Tourism-Boracay. In May this year, typhoon Caloy (international name, Chanchu) also hit Boracay.
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Icotanim said that of the more than 100 accredited resorts and hotels in the island, only two establishments reported booking cancellations, while the rest were having full occupancy in December.
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"The only problem is the power fluctuations, caused by fallen electric posts and trees during the onslaught of the typhoon," Icotanim said.
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"While reconstruction and repair for the affected structures are in full swing, it is business as usual in Boracay,"said Helen Camarista, the supervising tourism operations office in Western Visayas.
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"Holiday makers are back on the beach and other tourist attractions and points of interests in Boracay Island," Camarista added.
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Icotanim said the full-year volume of visitors in the island may register a 20 percent growth from 2005. Top visitors to Boracay, apart from Filipino vacationers, were Koreans, Japanese, Europeans and Americans.
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The DOT expects visitor arrivals to peak in January during the Ati-Atihan festival in Aklan, the province that collects taxes from Boracay Island.
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Boracay establishments remit about P7 billion in taxes to the national government annually, but a foreign resort operator said the amount could easily climb 10 times to P70 billion if foreigners would be allowed to own and develop properties in the island.
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"It will be like Disneyland, with brick roads and world-class facilities," the resort operator said. The Philippine Constitution, however, prevents foreigners from owning lands in the country, although some foreigners who have married Filipinas were able to do so.
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"We hope that someday, the Filipino people will realize how foreigners can help Philippine tourism and economy to grow beyond their present levels," he said. Roderick T. dela Cruz |















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