BAGUIO CITY – The Cordillera office of the Department of Tourism (DOT-CAR) and the city government recently recognized the important role played by the media in significantly enhancing the current state of the region’s tourism industry, especially in the promotion and marketing of tourist sites, including potential ones, that have evolved through the years.
The formal recognition ceremony was conducted in the presence of DOT-CAR regional director Jovita Ganongan, Baguio City Congress Rep. Mark Go and City Administrator Bonifacio dela Pena who represented Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong.
The annual media appreciation is spearheaded by the DOT-CAR every two years to recognize the important contributions and partnerships of the agency and the local governments with the media that serve as a channel in aggressively promoting and marketing the various public and private tourist destinations in the region that have resulted to a significant increase in foreign and domestic tourist arrivals in the different provinces after the wrath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ganongan claimed that the mainstream and social media had been consistently working extra hard in providing prospective foreign and domestic tourists with the latest updates in the status of various tourist destinations through the articles, photographs and videos published and posted in their respective platforms that triggered the interests of people to consider the Cordillera as one of their must-see and must-visit destinations.
For his part, Rep. Go also shared his insights on the important role media has played in shaping the image of the city and the region as premier destinations in the country because of their continuous publication and posting of their respective write-ups, photographs and videos that serve as an added boost in giving a fresh outlook on the status of the local tourism industry.
He said that the city and the region are blessed with natural beauty and grandeur worthy of visiting and the media has provided foreign and domestic tourists with the needed teaser for them to prioritize spending their break in the different parts of the region.
On the other hand, dela Pena narrated his latest experience when he led the City Administrator’s Office to a benchmarking event in Mountain Province where he noted that there are still many potential tourist spots that must be explored in the region and that Cordillerans should make it a point to visit these spots for them to appreciate and contribute in aggressively promoting the destinations to entice people to prioritize their visits to the Cordillera.
Various media portioners and bloggers expressed their gratitude to the DOT-CAR for the agency’s appreciation and recognition of their role in helping the agency and local governments aggressively promote and market their respective existing and potential tourist spots that will contribute in bolstering tourist arrivals in the future. By Dexter A. See
