ATOK, Benguet – The town’s tourism industry continues to flourish following the surge in tourist arrivals at the start of the year, indicative of the significant gains of the municipal government in aggressively promoting the industry that will spur the local economy, Mayor Franklin Smith said here recently.
He reported that based on the data of tourist arrivals in the municipality for the first two and a half months of the year, visitors to the locality had almost doubled the recorded tourist arrivals during the same period last year, although the figures are still being finalized.
Smith said that the influx of visitors to the various tourist spots in the municipality has been evident, especially when the temperature in the locality dropped to single digit right at the start of the year until the middle of the current month, the cool weather serving as a natural pull for people to visit a certain destination like Atok.
The municipal chief executive claimed that the local government is now closely working with the local tourism industry stakeholders to address the pressing issues caused by the influx of visitors, such as the inadequate parking spaces, waste disposal, among others, for the convenience of those wanting to spend a well-deserved break in the municipality.
Atok is now one of the preferred tourist destinations outside Baguio City because of the emergence of various agri-tourism and eco-tourism areas that serve as the town’s attractions complementing the prevailing cool weather year-round.
Last year, Atok recorded more than 160,000 tourist arrivals, much higher to the over 100,000 arrivals reported in 2023.
Mayor Smith pointed out it is still important for the municipal government and the concerned tourism industry stakeholders to strike a balance between the development of potential tourist spots in the different barangays and the preservation and protection of the environment to ensure that these sceneries in the locality are not compromised and therefore lose their value as tourist attractions.
According to him, tourism is fast emerging as one of the town’s major economic drivers that continues to generate employment for qualified residents and increased economic activities and alternative sources of livelihood, aside from agriculture which has ben the main source of livelihood in the different barangays.
He urged the local tourism industry stakeholders to continue improving their respective areas by providing adequate parking spaces and ensuring proper waste disposal of waste to maintain sanitation in the locality and contribute in preserving and protecting the environment for sustained growth and development of the industry.
The Cordillera has been identified by the tourism department as one of the major tourist destinations in the country because of its numerous nature-based destinations that continue to entice foreign and domestic tourists to consider the region as their must-see destinations.
Mayor Smith also extended an invitation to prospective investors to put up tourism-related businesses to contribute in providing greater opportunities for the development of strategic areas in the different parts of the municipality. By Dexter A. See
