Saturday, October 20, 2007 CICC needs bigger summit halls to become major venue for Mice
PLANS to expand the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) are underway to make the venue “a true convention center.”
CICC consultant Marisa Nallana said the 1,000-square meter summit hall of the convention center will be expanded to 2,400 square meters. To increase guest capacity, the present 1,000-seater plenary room will be expanded to accommodate 3,000 people, she added.
“The CICC needs to be refitted and readjusted to tap its potential as a venue for exhibition, conferences and trade fairs,” she said during a recent forum with tourism stakeholders.
Nallana said the CICC is becoming a venue of choice for meetings, exhibitions and trade fairs, as evidenced by its being fully booked until the first quarter of 2009.
This is why plans to expand the convention center will have to be done in phases so as not to disrupt the activities to be held at CICC, she said.
The CICC housed some of the activities of the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit last January. Recently, it also housed the Philippine Travel Exchange and the Philippine International Tourism Fair.
Niche
In a separate interview, Tourism Undersecretary for Tourism Planning and Promotions Eduardo Jarque Jr. said that apart from Cebu becoming a popular resort destination, the province is also trying to establish its niche as the country’s prime location for meetings, incentives, convention and exhibitions (Mice).
He said the CICC poses as a competition to major convention centers in Manila, like the Philippine International Convention Center and the SMX Convention Center.
“They may have realized that there are convention centers in the south to contend with and Cebu is a good choice,” Jarque said, adding that the proximity of beach resorts to the metropolis is a big advantage.
Department of Tourism 7 Director Patria Aurora Roa said even though the CICC’s management is not promoting the place it has become an “asset.”
Mice challenge
Other than the CICC, she also cited hotels like the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino (WCCHC), Marco Polo Plaza and Cebu City Marriott Hotel, among others as major venues for congresses and conferences.
WCCHC general manager Marco Protacio said, though, that while the “Mice trend” benefits Cebu’s tourism industry, it also poses a challenge for hotel players.
With the entry of more tourists, Protacio said demand for de luxe and first class rooms have increased. “(This is) an aspect that Cebu still needs to address,” he added.
He said high-end tourists, like the Europeans, look after “brand names for hotels and five star properties.”
Protacio said Sofitel, the brand of the SM-developed hotel at the Cebu City north reclamation area, is a welcomed development.
“It is a good thing that it (Sofitel) will be inaugurated this year. It will help uplift Cebu’s image,” he said.
Sofitel will be run by Accor, a European hotel operator of more than 3,800 hotels worldwide. Accor owns hotel brands like Novotel, Mercure, Suitehotel and All Seasons. (MMM)
