Category: Featured Event

Two Filipino plastic surgeons have urged the government to set high standards in medical tourism if it is really determined to make the country a top regional destination for foreign patients.

The Philippines has probably the loudest, if not the most festive celebration of New Year's Eve, when fireworks light up the evening sky and sounds of a million firecrackers announce the coming of a new year. This video was taken on 1st of January 2008 at a hotel somewhere in Tomas Morato, Quezon City, Metro Manila. It was a spectacle of lights and sounds that dazzled the eyes and numbed the eardrums of midnight revelers. Happy New Year! Watch the video.

Flora Filipina (Philippine Flowers)

Good prospects for horticulture industry cited
From MANILA STANDARD TODAY

Commercial growers and hobbyists have cited the great potential of the Philippines as a major exporter of ornamental horticulture products.

At the opening ceremony of the Flora Filipina Expo in February 2006, the Philippine Horticultural Society Inc. and the Philippine Orchid Society have committed to join together in putting the local industry at par with those of Thailand and Singapore.

Christmas in the Philippines is a spectacle of lights and vibrant colors that convey a festive mood and jolly atmosphere.  As a Christian country, the Philippines joins the rest of the world in celebrating the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ.  This makes Manila and other major cities in the Philippines a tourist draw during the Christmas season.

From lively interior decors inside homes to giant Christmas trees outdoor, the country comes alive with a kaleidescope of neon lights and beams on the nights of December to early January.

Metro Manila is particularly glowing with rainbow colors in December.  Favorite destinations during this time of year include Cubao in Quezon City which has the tallest outdoor Christmas tree matching the size of Araneta Coliseum, the twin giant malls of SM City North EDSA and Trinoma also in Quezon City, Roxas Boulevard in Manila, SM Mall of Asia in Pasay, Greenhills in San Juan and the Ayala Center in Makati City.

The Department of tourism (DOT) aims to promote cultural spots, rather than the numerous white sand beaches dotting the country's 7,000 plus islands, according to a report by GMANews.   "This year we are going beyond the sun and sea destinations. We want to highlight our cultural and heritage sites as well as health and wellness destinations," Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim was quoted as saying.

President Benigno Aquino III has issued Proclamation No. 84, which identified the holidays in 2011. This goes against the previous administration’s practice of moving the holiday to the nearest Monday to enable workers to enjoy long weekends.  The previous administration pursued the so-called holiday economics which encouraged people to visit tourist destinations during long weekends.

Hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people, trooped to the Mall of Asia complex in Pasay City on Saturday nights from February 12 to March 12, 2011, to witness the dazzling display of fireworks dancing to the tune of popular music.

The Second Philippine International Pyromusical Competition in 2011 put on an amazing shower in the sky of explosive colors and electrifying music, best viewed at the Seaside Boulevard at SM Mall of Asia.

Participating countries include South Korea, Spain, Portugal, the United Kingdom, China, France, Japan, Canada, Australia and the Philippines.

The International School of Sustainable Tourism (ISST) offcially opened in Subic Bay on March 23, 2011.    The school is the first institution of its kind that in the ASEAN region that provides both short-term courses (seven days to three months) and facilities that inspire and encourage quality of tourism human resources, environmental and cultural conservation, marketing and product development strategies on sustainable tourism.

President Benigno Aquino III has issued Proclamation No. 295, identifying Philippine holidays in 2012, and scheduling them near weekends, to give workers enough time to visit their families in the provinces.  Under the proclamation, there will be at least six long weekends during 2012.