Pangasinan welcomes more tourists as restrictions eased

CHOOSE YOUR ISLAND Quezon Island is one of the most popular tourist destinations at the Hundred Islands National Park in Alaminos City. The Hundred Islands is expected to welcome more people outside of Ilocos region as Pangasinan province relaxes travel requirements for visitors in time for summer. —WILLIE LOMIBAO

LINGAYEN, PANGASINAN—Tourists outside the Ilocos region are now allowed to visit Pangasinan after the provincial government eased travel restrictions this week.

Gov. Amado Espino III issued an executive order removing the travel authority and medical certificates from the required documents when entering the province.

But Espino asked tourists to check their destinations as some local governments might still require them to present a negative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction result when traveling to a town or a city in the province.

Pangasinan began to accept tourists coming from the Ilocos region and Baguio City in September last year under the “Ridge and Reef” travel bubble with its neighboring areas.

Last month, tourism industry players in Bolinao town asked Espino to accept tourists from Central Luzon region that make up the town’s second biggest tourism market, next to Metro Manila.

Bolinao and a large part of the province are known for its natural attractions, such as beaches, rivers, caves and waterfalls.

About 150 tourism-related establishments, like resorts and restaurants, have been built around these attractions in Bolinao alone.

Struggling

According to Bolinao Business Tourism Association, relaxing restrictions on tourists, especially during the peak months between March and May, would help revive the tourism industry that is struggling due to revenue losses.

Espino said the local government had recognized the decline of the local tourism industry since “resources were directed to address our health and security systems.”

In his order, Espino asked local governments to enact “reasonable regulations” to maintain a balance between local economic recovery and safety measures.

He said minimum public health standards, such as physical distancing and wearing of face masks and face shields, would still be required.

Espino said tourists must register in the online visitor portal pangasinan.tarana.ph that would regulate compliance with travel requirements when entering Pangasinan.

He said the system would remove complications when applying for a travel schedule in the province.