BAGUIO Tourism Officer Alec Mapalo has reminded the public to follow health and safety protocols following the opening of tourism.

“Now that we have allowed tourists to stay with their friends or relatives here in Baguio, it is important that our own residents, when serving as hosts, to be mindful and be the ones to remind guests of health and safety precautions in the household, and in public areas when going around the city,” Mapalo said.

Data from visita.baguio.gov.ph, the city’s online registration platform for tourists, showed that there are 368 visitors, mostly from the country’s three major regions, that have approved visits to the city since Baguio opened its doors for tourists from the different parts of Luzon on October 22, 2020.

Of the approved visits, 236 visitors will be coming from the National Capital Region, 56 tourists from Central Luzon, 48 from Southern Tagalog, 20 from the Ilocos Region and eight from Cagayan Valley.

Mapalo said a significant increase in the number of visitors wanting to spend their vacation in the city is because of the relaxed rules for tourists compared to the only 15 visitors from the Ilocos Region that came up to the city when tourism was opened for the Baguio – Ilocos Region tourism bubble on October 1.

There were a total of 1,412 travel requests for visits to the city that were recorded in the city’s online registration platform for tourists from October 22 to November 3.

“It will now become our mutual responsibility to be vigilant and cautious of city health protocols. Report guests if they become symptomatic, and also report those who are doing illegal tourism trades and practices, such as hiring or booking unregistered tourist transports or accommodations,” Mapalo said.

The tourism officer said the industry may see a reprieve next month as requests to travel to the highland city have been noted.

“We have been already receiving travel requests for November and even December. Some are looking at possible long-term staycation or vacation in December even as long as a month. So it is possible that by then, we might exceed our allowed entry as of now, which is 500 tourists per day.” (With a report from Baguio City Public Information Office)