Eco-tourism gaining headway in Itogon

by Joseph B Zambrano

ITOGON, Benguet, (PIA) -- Efforts to promote eco-tourism in this quiet mining town is gaining headway with tourist arrivals this year almost doubled than the figure recorded last year.

Mayor Oscar Camatiles said as of October, the town has already recorded 64,177 tourists as compared to the 41,014 in the whole of 2010.

The town is slowly making its niche as an eco tourist destination foremost of which is its Mount Ugo Summer Climb which has been recognized both in the local and national levels. For two consecutive years, it bagged the Best Tourism Event in the Philippines under the Sports, Adventure, and Wellness category in the National Convention of the Association of Tourism Officers of the Philippines (ATOP). The town is working hard to get the Hall of Fame next year.

The Mt. Ugo Summer Climb is an annual invitational and promotional summer mountaineering activity which is unique as it has historical and cultural features. It traverses a Spanish trail connecting Nueva Vizcaya and Pangasinan while native houses of the Iwak tribes are found also along the way. It also includes community immersion where one learns the culture of the people through cultural presentations, sharing of stories, and their way of life.

Other areas frequented by visitors are the mushrooming resorts and the Itogon hot springs which are very accessible.

There is also the Balatoc Mine tours which offers an opportunity for visitors to see and learn about the mines and the process of gold mining.

“Under our tourism development program, we realized that when this program is duly and strongly supported it would be a multi-million earning industry.”

“It is indeed a financially-promising industry because in the average tourist receipt for the first and second quarters of this year alone, it was projected that a whooping amount of P 96, 538,500 had been spent by 420 foreign tourists and 63,757 local domestic visitors,” Camantiles said.

The municipal government got inspired by the potential of our local tourism industry and they boldly ventured to re-package our comprehensive tourism development plan to include among others strategic approaches to enhance its scenic spots and strengthen promotional and marketing strategies, he added.

Lined up tourism projects with funding are the enhancement of the 13 level resorts and the restoration of the Ave Maria historical site, he said.

The other barangays will be enhancing their eco-tourism potentials and we will develop and promote for national and international tourism-markets, Camantiles added.

The mayor also expressed appreciation to the barangay government and leadership of Tinongdan, which hosts the Mt. Ugo Summer climb, for their exemplary mark insofar as eco-tourism is concerned.(JDP/ JBZ- PIA CAR).