SM CITY Clark is all set and ready to host this year’s biggest tourism event in North Philippines (NorthPhil) on November 17 to 19.
Dubbed NorthPhil Tourism and Travel Expo, the event involves the Department of Tourism (DOT) and its offices in all of Luzon’s four regions north of Manila, with the Association of Tourism Officers of Central Luzon and Cebu Pacific Air as partners, and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Clark Development Corporation, Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority, NLEX Corporation, and the provincial governments of Aurora, Bataan, Zambales and Pampanga, and the Angeles City Tourism Office as sponsors.
The DOT said the expo marks NorthPhil’s rise as a tourism super-region and global destination, with CAR (Cordillera Administrative Region) as a hub for natural wonders, Ilocandia for history and culture, Cagayan Valley for all-terrain adventures, and Central Luzon for sports, agri-tourism and culinary escapades.
“The diverse attractions in those four NorthPhil regions constitute a complete menu of fun activities and destinations -- all accessible, not just by air and sea, but also by land – turning the entire North into a tourism megamall,” said DOT Region III Officer-in-Charge Carol de Guzman-Uy.
“Such attributes will be showcased in the NorthPhil exhibits and shows for the entire duration of the expo, with all the tourism industry sectors participating,” De Guzman-Uy added.
The expo also includes provincial pavilions, corporate booths for tour packages, industry dialogs on sustainable tourism, Quiz Bee Challenge, game shows, cultural presentations, crafts and arts demo, raffle draws, and fashion show, among others.
Organized by the Philippine Exhibits and Themeparks Corporation (Petco) for the DOT, the expo also highlights the looming tourism boom NorthPhil arising from the ongoing massive buildup of tourism-related infrastructure across the entire north and the rest of the archipelago.
Driving the expo and the rise of tourist traffic in NorthPhil is the increasing passenger volume in the international airports in Clark, Subic and Laoag, all benefitting from the spillover of airline flights from Manila.
NorthPhil also hosts the principal domestic airports in Baguio City in the Cordilleras, Basco in Batanes, and Tuguegarao in Cagayan; and the community airports in Bagabag in Nueva Vizcaya, Baler in Aurora, Cauayan and Palanan in Isabela, Iba in Zambales, Itbayat Island in Batanes, Lingayen and Rosales in Pangasinan, Plaridel in Bulacan, Poro Point in La Union, and Vigan in Ilocos Sur.
Most of those provinces form part of two super-regions – the North Luzon Agribusiness Quadrangle and the Metro Luzon Urban Beltway – and both can be reached by land from any of those airports, or straight from Manila.
Other event details can be obtained from Petco (tel: +632 8329303 to 05; fax: +632 5562723; email: northphilexpo@gmail.com, northphilexposecretariat@gmail.com; or visit www.northphilexpo.com). (PR)