MANILA, 4 June 2020: Most tourist destinations that already shifted to the so-called ‘modified general community quarantine’ (MGCQ) are still hesitant to resume tourism activities, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat disclosed Tuesday.
Among these are Bohol and Baguio, which seek to postpone leisure activities by July and September 2020, respectively, to assure readiness in accepting travellers.
“This gives us also time to process all the hotels for them to have certificates and this also gives us time to talk to the local government units if they are ready,” Romulo-Puyat told reporters in a virtual briefing.
She said DOT would announce the first province to reopen tourism once preparation for safety protocols at the local level is completed.
“Right now, there is no province that is ready to accept tourists. Even GCQ to GCQ, a lot of provinces are hesitant to accept commercial flights,” she said.
Travel for tourism purposes may be allowed between places under MGCQ subject to travel restrictions imposed by the local government units.
However, only essential non-leisure travel between GCQ to MGCQ areas or vice-versa is allowed.
Earlier in the week, aviation authorities asked airlines to postpone the launch of more services due following an increase in Covid-19 cases.
( Source: Philippines News Agency)
