Friday, September 26, 2008 Cebuano businessman ‘uplifts’ banca island-hopping service
APART from wanting to support the Department of Tourism’s thrust of promoting Cebu as an adventure tourism destination, a Cebuano entrepreneur has decided to pursue his dream to provide decent transportation facilities for local and foreign tourists who want to go to different islands near Cebu.
Through the Islands Banca Cruises Corp., Islands Group president and chief executive officer Jay Aldeguer can tap adventurous tourists who are in constant search for things to do and places to go.
Islands Banca Cruises started operations last May with an investment of about P2 million. It has three motorized pumpboats—Butanding (with a capacity of 20 to 35 persons), Butete (with a capacity of 12 to 20 persons) and Bolinao (with a capacity of two to eight persons)—that can ferry tourists to as far as Apo Island off Dauin, Oriental Negros and Bantayan Islands, Cebu.
The company will be formally launched tomorrow with Tourism Secretary Joseph “Ace” Durano at its office in Barangay Punta Engaño, Lapu-Lapu City.
Aldeguer said, though, that he wants to do more by elevating the standards of the island-hopping business and putting more value to a product by increasing its services.
“We want to elevate the standards of an already existing industry and make our product truly world-class. We want to be a premier tourism brand,”
Aldeguer told reporters in a press conference last Tuesday.
He expressed confidence about getting the return on his investment in a year because of the high demand for such activity, saying the company has had full bookings in the past three months. About 30 percent of the bookings are from Cebu.
He admitted that while he is tempted to offer similar services in other provinces like Bohol, the Cebu market is more than enough to keep him and his staff busy.
He said, though, that Islands Banca Cruises Corp., a company under the Islands Group, plans to acquire or outsource and accredit 15 bancas (motorboats) in time for its full-swing operations in summer next year.
Islands Banca Cruises customers can avail of activities and special packages, such as sunset cruises, picnics, massage on board the banca, theme parties, candle-lit dinners and water-based activities like snorkeling, scuba diving, fish feeding, sea kayaking and dolphin watching.
Islands Banca boats are also furnished with iPod dock and beanbags.
Aldeguer is planning to set it up with a Wi-Fi Internet access. (NRC)
