Brunei Darussalam – Sustainable tourism continues to be the game face of the Department of Tourism (DOT) as it supports the ten-nation strong cooperation of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to attract next generation travelers.
Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat made the assertion as she leads the Philippine delegation to this year’s ASEAN TOURISM FORUM 2020.
This year’s forum is aptly themed “ASEAN: Together Towards a Next Generation of Travel”, aimed at keeping abreast with the dynamics and demands of changing travel patterns, demographics, behaviors and preferences.
“The Philippines is keeping in step with the rest of the world’s technological advancement to capture the new breed of tourists while remaining committed in its core values of promoting sustainable and responsible tourism,” Puyat said.
The tourism chief likewise remarked that the (PDOT) has partnered with private organizations and the academe including navigation application Waze, escooter rental services GrabWheels, and social media video application TikTok, to capture phenomenal global urbanization, new eloquence, and technological advancements that are driving the new breed of tourists.
The country’s refreshed It’s More Fun In The Philippines campaign features crowd-sourced ads grounded in sustainability with zero commissioned footages upholding smaller carbon footprint, promotion of responsible tourism practices, and sustainability drives More Fun Forever and Save our Spots.
“Carbon offsetting, reduction of single-use plastics, wellness vacations, and green hotels are among this year’s travel trends that perfectly align with the country’s sustainable tourism direction as well the ASEAN’s next gen travelers that are tech-savvy and environmentally conscious,” Secretary Puyat added.
The Philippines also moves towards green energy production, proper recycling, and procurement of locally grown, organic food headlined by this year’s ASEAN 2020 Tourism Standards Awards for ASEAN Green Hotel awardees Amarela Resort, Amorita Resort, Seda Hotel Nuvali, Bohol Beach Club Resort, and Pearl Farm Beach Resort. ASEAN Clean Tourist City winners are San Carlos City, Negros Occidental, Baguio City, and Iloilo City and ASEAN Sustainable Tourism Awardees Palawan Urban Heritage Tour for the Urban Category and the Municipality of Tanay, Rizal for the Rural Category.
Also conferred at this year’s forum is the ASEAN MICE Venue, Meeting Room Category citation for Jpark Island Resort and Waterpark, Cebu, Marriott Hotel Manila, Bai Hotel, Conrad Manila, Princesa Garden Island Resort and Spa.
ASEAN Tourism Forum is a cooperative regional effort to promote the ASEAN region as one tourist destination. It recognizes that ASEAN is stronger and more compelling as one collective destination.
