|
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Local tour guides survive on visitors from Europe, US, not Korea - CAT-G
Despite a rise in the number of tourists from Korea, tour guides in Cebu rely more on European and United States-based visitors for income.
“We count more on foreign tourists from Europe, US and other countries because they are the ones who need our service.
Koreans don’t because they have their own Korean tour guides accredited by the Department of Tourism (DOT),” Rafael Tura, president of the Cebu Association of Tour Guides (CAT-G), said in an interview.
The DOT 7 reported a 43-percent increase in Korean tourists to 120,871 from last year’s 84,326 in the first 10 months this year. This has made Koreans the top travel market for the province, making up 35.7 percent of the total visitor arrivals in Cebu above Japanese (28.6 percent) and US tourists (10 percent).
Language
“Koreans have Korean tour guides due to the language factor,” Tura said.
He told Sun.Star Cebu that while Korean tour guides serve as their competitors, they are not bitter because they still have a huge market with other tourists.
“We support the efforts of the DOT ... to boost the country’s tourism industry.
So we also welcome Korean visitors with Korean tour guides even if only … airlines, hotels and restaurants will benefit,” he said.
Tura, however, said that if Korean tourists were fluent in English, they would prefer local tour guides in Cebu because they have more experience and knowledge on the country’s tourists’ destinations.
Potential market
Aside from foreign tourists, domestic travelers also offer a huge market potential for local tour guides, he said.
While the number of foreign travelers increased 16 percent from 291,716 last year to 338,600 this year, the number of domestic travelers also increased seven percent to 600,066 people from last year’s 560,064.
“We benefit from our local tourists who come for educational tours and vacation,” he said. He added that the DOT urges
Filipinos not to be strangers of their own land.
Tura added that CAT-G sees a promising year in 2006.
“We are glad because we’re now recognized as vital contributors to the tourism industry. We are now coordinating with hotels, spas and restaurants for us to serve our tourists better and reach a wider market,” he said.
CAT-G, composed of over 130 members, turned 25 years this month. (ALC)
(December 28, 2005 issue)
Write letter to the editor. Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board. Click here. |
|
[return to top]
[home]
[network page]
|
LOCAL NEWS
BUSINESS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFESTYLE
FEATURE
SUPERBALITA
WEEKEND
|
