Villagers upbeat on tourism

AFTER YEARS of working as a caregiver in foreign lands, 41-year-old Neri San Pablo saw opportunities in the once isolated and sleepy town of Caramoan in Camarines Sur in 2008, when droves of tourists came over.

It dawned on her that she could earn in her hometown what she was getting abroad, and still be with her family. “Even though I was again scheduled to leave for Canada, I was convinced that I could stay in my hometown for good,” she says.

With her savings from taking care of an American diplomat in Cyprus, and the early retirement pay of her husband, Don-Don, San Pablo put up a small grocery in her front yard.

The couple now also sells souvenir items in their store and serves ice-cold beer in a four-table bar they recently set up.

Neri prays that tourists continue to be spellbound by the beautiful sites in Caramoan, and that no untoward incidents would happen to spoil their stay.

Rooming needs

Godofredo del Castillo, owner of Sights and Sands Tourist Inn here, used to be into the hardware business and copra trading. He decided to convert his warehouse into a rooming facility for tourists.

At first, Del Castillo says he offered his house to tourists who had nowhere else to stay in 2007. This year, his wife—a teacher—will help him run their inn as she has chosen to retire early.

According to Mayor Constantino Cordial Jr., tourist arrivals have grown from a negligible rate to a phenomenal one after stories started coming out in media about the reality show “Survivor” that was being filmed in Caramoan in 2008.

The town has recorded some 1,000 tourists arrivals a day during the peak season, and 700 tourists during the lean months.

In 2009, Caramoan rose to become a second-class municipality from its previous fourth class.

Gota Beach closure

Cordial acknowledges that the local government was unprepared for the influx of tourists as it still has to catch up with the demand for new tourist facilities.

Sometime in 2008, when Gota Beach was closed to tourists after it was used as location sites for “Survivor France,” “Survivor Serbia” and “Survivor Israel,” the mayor was prompted to accommodate some 100 tourists who arrived unexpectedly.

Soon after, Cordial says, more tourists came and the influx encouraged owners of spacious houses to accept home stays for an average of three days and two nights.

Maria Ravanilla, director of the Department of Tourism in Bicol, notes that 35 families are now offering home stay to tourists, while several other inns and resorts have opened with new facilities.

Tourism Code

She says, though, that direct participants in the flourishing tourism industry need training to ensure a systematic approach to their community-based operations.

“In Donsol, Sorsogon, butanding (whale shark) interaction was successfully orchestrated through a close partnership of the local government unit (LGU) with community members and civil society groups like the World Wildlife Fund,” Ravanilla says.

For one, there is a need to pass the Tourism Code in the town to provide general guidelines, she says.

Vice Mayor Juan Cordis confirms that the municipal council has yet to pass a comprehensive code for local tourism. But he says it had already passed a resolution authorizing the collection of an “environmental fee” of P30 for every tourist visiting.

Garbage fee

Half of the amount goes to garbage management, while the rest goes to the general fund of the LGU, Cordis says.

But he says the council still has to find a way of collecting from other entries to the town, aside from the Guijalo Port.

On Monday, Ravanilla met with local officials to discuss how to attain full benefits from the prospering industry. They could study other areas in the town which may be developed for tourism purposes as the provincial government is directly managing the renowned Gota Beach facility, she says.

The beach is now closed to tourists as the Belgian, Polish and Dutch editions of “Survivor” are being shot there until June 15.

But Ravanilla says this development is actually advantageous to the community as arriving tourists would tend to settle in facilities outside the beach resort.

“While some would resent it because they could not enter Gota Beach because of the “Survivor,” it is actually helping spread the economic benefits of tourism as the tourists are forced to find other ways to enjoy the sights of Caramoan,” she says.