The joys (and pain) of traveling | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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AS one gets older, it becomes more of a hassle to travel. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a domestic trip or an overseas journey, I find it a pain, for one, just to pack my luggage. A lack of information about the events one is obliged to attend, for instance,…
12h ago
Where to get that delicious chorizo and other Negrense treats in Manila | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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"HALAD” is a big deal among Hiligaynon people. It means “to offer a dedication, a devotion, or a gift,” such that when I spent a few summers as a child in my father’s hometown of Roxas City, Capiz, I even participated in a May tradition, called “Halad kay Mama Mary.”…
#Food #decor #msmes #Travel #fashion #jewelry #tourism #furniture #Accessories #furnishings
on Sep 6
Smooth landings after turbulent skies | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE aviation industry in the Philippines is alive and kicking, as most local carriers have now restored most, if not all, of their prepandemic routes and are on their way to beefing up their aircraft fleet in anticipation of a global recovery in international travel. The exuberant activity and optimism…
on Oct 31
Government urged to review visa deposit by foreign retirees | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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A lawmaker believes government should review the minimum amount foreigners must pay to legally stay and retire in the Philippines. “Ang baba naman! (That’s so low),” said Senator Loren Legarda when informed by the Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA) that it requires a foreign national to...
on Oct 25
How to make ’em ‘Love the PHL’ sans funds for wooing? | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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A REDUCTION in the budget of the country’s premier tourism promotions government agency will result in less visibility of the Philippines’ beaches, dive sites, cuisine, among others, in key overseas markets. Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Chief Operating Officer Ma. Margarita Montemayor Nograles...
on Oct 22
Tieza is looking for investors, partners in 8 tourism assets | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Tourism Infrastructure Enterprise Zone Authority (Tieza) has opened up for investment various assets in its possession, including a property on Boracay Island, recognized among the best islands in the world. In Tieza’s recent budget briefing at the Senate Finance Subcommittee G chaired by...
on Oct 21
‘Accessibility via airports will foster more hotel investments’ | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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If you build it, they will come. Tourism Congress of the Philippines president James Montenegro was hopeful that more hotel rooms will be built, after the Department of Tourism (DOT) recently launched a roadmap to lift the hotel industry, enabling the stakeholders to meet the demands of rising...
on Oct 19
How hotel sales, marketing pros nurture their ties with clients | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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SALES and marketing in the hotel industry is a highly specialized skill, where professionals employ various strategies and schemes to foster and strengthen their relationships with individual guests and corporate clients, or with destination management companies and travel agencies. Hotel Sales...
on Oct 18
DBM, DPWH nix new tourism roads’ funding | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE efforts of government to encourage more domestic and foreign tourists to visit less popular tourism destinations may be stymied because no new roads and bridges will built leading to these areas. In a hearing on Tuesday on the Department of Tourism’s (DOT) proposed P3.4-billion budget for...
on Oct 18
Over 456,000 rooms needed by 2028–DOT | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Department of Tourism (DOT) has forecast a hotel room demand of 456,055 to meet the projected 10- to 12-million international arrivals by 2028. The agency, in collaboration with the Philippine Hotel Owners Association (PHOA), launched on Wednesday the Philippine Hotel Industry Strategic...
on Oct 17
10 developers make huge hotel investments in PHL | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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JUST 10 developers are pouring in the most number of investments in expanding the country’s hospitality industry. In his third quarter report, Leechiu Property Consultants (LPC) Director for Hotels, Tourism, and Leisure Alfred Lay said, of the over 40,000 hotel keys in the pipeline, 54 percent...
on Oct 10
Did ‘Somebody Feed Phil’ in Manila? Govt execs mum | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Department of Tourism (DOT) apparently did. The affable Phil Rosenthal, host of the popular Netflix series “Somebody Feed Phil,” was in the city recently, and had lunch at the DOT office in Makati, with Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, and other heads of the DOT attached agencies....
on Oct 7
Blockbuster ‘lechon’ at Turin slow food event | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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LECHON (roasted pig) took the show at the Terra Madre Salone del Gusto 2024 in Turin, Piedmont, Italy as the Philippine delegation showcased the country’s rich culinary heritage before 3,000 delegates from 120 countries. On her Facebook page, Reena Gamboa, president of Slow Food Negros posted...
on Oct 2
PHL finally covers travel plans of mainland Chinese | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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OUTBOUND travel is recovering swiftly in mainland China, with its citizens helping boost concerts and sports events around the world. Dragon Trail Research’s Chinese Traveler Sentiment Report as of September showed of the 1,025 Chinese travelers surveyed, “16 percent had traveled outside of...
on Oct 2
Fake PWD cards: Restaurants hit by discount abuse, profits suffer | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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RESTAURATEURS are railing against the proliferation of fake PWD (persons with disabilities) cards, which are used by non-PWD diners to get dining discounts illicitly, thus cutting a restaurant’s profit. Speaking at the recent Manila Gastronomiya 2024 Restaurant and Culinary Conference, Chef Myke...
on Sep 28
WTH is Kurkuri Bhindi, and why it could make me #PROkra | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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INDIAN cuisine seems to be having a moment. A number of restaurants have been offering Indian sections in their lunch time or dinner buffets, like at Joy Nostalg Hotel’s Nostalgia Lounge & Bar, or Lanson Place Manila’s Cyan Modern Kitchen. And it’s not just vegetarian options; I’m talking about hearty…
on Sep 28
Foreigners’ shopping seen aiding tourism rebound | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Senate has approved on third and final reading the proposed legislation that will refund value-added taxes (VAT) paid by foreign tourists on their purchases made in the Philippines. The measure, embodied in Senate Bill No. (SBN) 2415, or “An Act Creating a Vat Refund Mechanism for...
on Sep 27
Resort villas in the WPS? Tieza bids out project study | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (Tieza) is bidding out a P100-million project for a detailed engineering study of the West Philippine Sea (WPS) and neighboring islands. Tieza Chief Operating Office Mark T. Lapid confirmed to the BusinessMirror that the public bid for the...
on Sep 23
Paris anti-doping program finds almost 50 violations | BusinessMirror
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LAUSANNE, Switzerland—The anti-doping program for the Paris Olympics caught five athletes after earlier finding 40 rule violations among competitors who had been expected to take part in the Games, the agency that ran the operation said Thursday. Summing up its Olympic program, the International...
on Sep 22
Solons push higher 2025 budget for tourism | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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LAWMAKERS urged an increase in the budget of the Department of Tourism (DOT), which was allocated just P2.84 billion for 2025, down from this year’s budget of P3.03 billion. During the plenary deliberations on proposed House Bill No. 10800, or the General Appropriations Bill (fiscal year 2025)...
on Sep 20
Bonjour Paris! Will Pinoys bite direct service from Manila? | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Department of Tourism (DOT) is looking forward to more tourist arrivals from Europe with the resumption of nonstop flights between Paris and Manila in December. In a news statement, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco said, “Through this air route, we are eager to welcome more visitors...
on Sep 18
Investors are putting up hotels, but where’s infra? | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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GOVERNMENT needs to catch up with infrastructure needs of tourism destinations, which will host more hotels and resorts in the country. “Now that the projects are in the pipeline, the government agencies must step in. If it hasn’t been or done yet, the infrastructure has to catch up,” said Benito C.…
on Sep 18
Why is Ramon Ang praying a lot these days? | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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BILLIONAIRE tycoon Ramon S. Ang was in an uncharacteristically exuberant mood on Monday, when he attended the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines (EJAP)-San Miguel Corp.’s inaugural Aviation Forum. He discussed his plans for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), gabbed...
on Sep 13
No facilities for Taylor Swift concert–DOT official | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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A TOURISM official on Monday cited the lack of concert facilities as the reason for the Philippines’s inability to host the recent Taylor Swift Eras Tour. At the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines (Ejap)-San Miguel Corp. Aviation Forum on Monday, Officer-in-Charge for the...
on Sep 11
RSA to ‘pray’ for corrupt officials at airport | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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IPAGDADASAL ko na lang sila [I will just pray for them].” That was the off-the-cuff remark of San Miguel Corp. President Ramon S. Ang to BusinessMirror’s question on how his airport management company can resolve the issues of corruption among several government agencies manning the Ninoy Aquino...
on Sep 10
PHL tourism takes home 13 honors at World Travel Awards Asia edition | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Department of Tourism’s (DOT) controversial “Love the Philippines” (LVP) campaign was recognized Asia’s Leading Marketing Campaign at the World Travel Awards (WTA) for Asia & Oceania 2024. The agency edged out Air India’s Window of Possibilities, AirAsia’s Let’s Fly and Go, the Singapore...
on Sep 7
Domestic travel to break records in 2024–Leechiu | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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DOMESTIC travel in the Philippines is expected to break records this year, exceeding prepandemic levels. In a recent presentation at the recent Hotel Sales and Marketing Association general membership meeting, Leechiu Property Consultants (LPC) Director for Hotels, Tourism, and Leisure Alfred...
on Sep 4
TPB eyes ‘good’ sales as Phitex opens September 3 | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) will be holding its annual Philippine Travel Exchange (Phitex) from September 3 to 5, at the Conrad Manila. As of Monday, 89 confirmed buyers from 19 countries, along with 11 Philippine sellers, indicated attendance at the country’s largest...
on Sep 3
‘Muslims only’ beach to open in Boracay | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo / Special to the BusinessMirror A MUSLIMS-ONLY beach will be opening this September on Boracay Island. The announcement was made by the Malay-Boracay Tourism Office on its Facebook page: “We are excited to open an exclusive cove for our Muslim sisters on the island! Mark your…
on Sep 2
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ORGANIZERS of the 38th Negros Trade Fair this year hope to meet the P48 million in sales that were generated in 2023, as it offers an array of home-grown products from Negros Island. But they admit that the increasing costs of production as well as higher expenses in transporting the…
on Aug 31
The Olympics of central banking | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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AFTER the Philippines snagged a number of medals—two of them gold—at the recent Paris Olympics, the country receives one more important recognition, this time in the arena of central banking. A highly-specialized field, much like gymnastics (except for the use of more math and economics, ugh!),...
on Aug 30
HK, SG, Japan top destinations for Pinoys traveling abroad | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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CLOSE to 4 million Filipinos traveled to various countries in the first seven months of the year, slightly beating the current inbound travel numbers of 3.77 million. Data from the Department of Tourism (DOT) showed, of the 3.92 million outbound Philippine residents from January to July 2024,...
on Aug 24
A duck in flames and a whole package of fun | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Gokongwei Group certainly got their money’s worth when they spent about P1 billion to renovate Holiday Inn Manila Galleria, one of the most iconic hotels standing tall, and looking down on the often maddening Edsa-Ortigas traffic. From the largely opulent brown tenor of its former interiors,...
on Aug 23
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FILIPINOS are a generous lot. When we find success, we try to make sure everyone around us also benefits from our good fortune. But utang na loob (debt of gratitude) can be a heavy burden, plaguing us with guilt and imagined years of disaster and doom if the debt is…
on Aug 16
Tieza to lose ₱2.8M from BIMP-Eaga travel-tax perk | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (Tieza) stands to lose at least P2.8 million in revenue, with the recently announced exemptions for those traveling from Mindanao and Palawan to any destination within the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area...
on Aug 14
What to eat, where to go in Tagaytay | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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TAGAYTAY dominates as a tourism destination in the Philippines, having attracted over 1 million domestic visitors last year. It can’t be helped, I suppose. The sight of the jagged crater of Taal Volcano partially submerged in a placid lake, with low-lying clouds drifting close to it, has...
on Aug 9
World Expo 2025 is good exposure for PHL tourism | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Philippines’s participation in the World Expo 2025 in Osaka is expected to enhance the country’s profile in Japan and expose it to a wider international audience, as it targets the arrival of 8.4 million foreign tourists next year. In a Viber message to the BusinessMirror, Tourism Promotions...
on Aug 8
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THE Hong Kong-based Wharf Hotels, owner of the Marco Polo brand, is looking to expand into the resort business and forge more partnerships with Filipino investors, as a way to grow its footprint in the Philippines. In an interview with select reporters, Thomas Salg, President of Wharf Hotels, said, “We…
on Aug 6
Should Americans retire in the PHL? Why, why not | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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AN INTERNATIONAL business publication has removed the Philippines from its list of “The Best Places to Retire Abroad in 2024,” after it included natural hazards and climate change risk among its evaluation factors. In a piece on July 26, 2024, Forbes recommended 96 places in 24 different...
on Aug 5
No Pinoy ‘Love Boat’ captain yet, but we have our own ‘Julie McCoy’ | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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A FILIPINO captain piloting the “Love Boat?” “We believe that’s possible,” said Carnival Corp. Chief Human Resource Officer Bettina Deynes in a news briefing with reporters last Wednesday, as she underscored the company’s partnership with the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy (PMMA), the...
on Aug 4
New cruise visa waiver program may come under Malacañang scrutiny | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE waiving of tourist visas for visiting cruise passengers is expected to be questioned by Malacañang, in the light of its order to suspend the issuance of electronic visas to Chinese citizens for security reasons. A high-ranking government source told the BusinessMirror the Department of...
on Aug 4
Tieza rakes in ₱1.4B in taxes as outbound travel surges | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (Tieza) has collected some P1.36 billion in travel taxes in the first five months of the year. Data provided by the government-owned and -controlled corporation showed that gross travel taxes collected from January to May, was 32-percent...
on Aug 1
Digital tech, improved airports/seaports perk up tourism sector–PBBM | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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DIGITAL technology, along with several tourism infrastructure improvements, have eased travel to and around the Philippines. At his State of the Nation Address (Sona) on Monday, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said, government has already made inbound travel to the country “more convenient...
on Aug 1
Most Sofitel Manila workers got separation benefits | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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SOME 70 percent of the 500-person workforce of the now-shuttered Sofitel Philippine Plaza, whose view of the Manila Bay sunset enamored former US President Barack Obama, have gotten their separation benefits. In a Viber exchange, Philippine Plaza Holdings Inc. (PPHI) President Esteban Peña Sy...
on Aug 1
Ayala spending ₱7.1B to add rooms, renovate hotels | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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AYALA Land Inc. (ALI) is allocating P7.1 billion in capital expenditures to reinvent its hotels and resorts over the next five years, covering four El Nido resorts and 10 hotels. This will expand the room inventory of its hotels and resorts to 8,000 nationwide, by 2028, said the company in…
on Aug 1
Here’s where to stay for an amazing view of planes taxiing on a runway | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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HAVING had to recently attend back-to-back conferences in Cebu, then in Manila, I was able to check out one of the coolest hotels in Newport City, Pasay. The 460-room Belmont Hotel Manila, a homegrown brand of Megaworld Hotels and Resorts, sits almost across the ballroom of a nearby hotel, where…
on Jul 26
Pogo ban spells vacant office, home units–realtor | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE departure of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (Pogo) will likely result in significant vacancies in the office and residential property markets, especially in the cities of Pasay, Parañaque, and Muntinlupa. In a recent press briefing prior to the State of the Nation Address (Sona) where...
on Jul 24
Stupid is as stupid does | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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BY now, everyone who has a social-media account must have seen the photo attributed to the Philippine News Agency of a super-steep wheelchair ramp built by the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) along the Edsa Busway. Did the brilliant boys and girls in the MMDA think that wheelchairs are now…
on Jul 19
Manila listed among riskiest tourist sites | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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MANILA landed fifth on Forbes Advisor’s list of “Most Risky Cities For Tourists” in a piece on travel insurance companies. As per the list published online on July 11, 2024, Manila, with an overall score of 91.49 out of 100, ranks behind Caracas, Valenzuela (100); Karachi, Pakistan (93.12);...
on Jul 18
BSP rate cuts will stimulate property market—Leechiu | Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo
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THE dovish stance of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is expected to perk up capital markets, enabling property developers to launch more projects and buyers to engage in more transactions. In a news briefing by Leechiu Property Consultants (LPC) Inc. last week, Tam Angel, Director for...
on Jul 17