Fashion
Even as the outrage over the tanim-bala (bullet-planting) scam has dominated Philippine social media, the trending tweets in the United Kingdom last Tuesday evening was #VisitPhilippinesAgain2016.
About 200 UK-based travel media, bloggers, TV celebrities, “influencers,” travel trade partners and investors trooped to Searcy’s, a private club at the top of the iconic The Gherkin, for the launch of the global campaign for VPA2016 of the Department of Tourism and its marketing arm, the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB).
Filipino-American rap artist apl.de.ap of The Black Eyed Peas sang a catchy new tune titled “It’s More Fun in the Philippines” especially composed for the campaign. In the song, he narrates “places to go, the things to see” when a tourist visits the Philippines. “You can walk along the beach, the sun shining on your feet, wine and dine, our food is unique, go dancing in the moonlight…” he rapped, as a music video played on the screen behind apl. de.ap showing the images he was narrating.
In a brief message, Tourism Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez Jr. expressed his appreciation for the guests at the event, and extolled everyone to “just visit the Philippines.”
In a separate interview, he said, “Visit Philippines Again 2016 is going to be the most massive retail-focused effort the Philippines has ever made. We’re negotiating with tour operators and travel agents for incentives to give returning visitors to the Philippines.”
He added, “We’re putting together packages and rewards, so that when a tourist returns to the Philippines for a second or fifth time, he will get discounts in several establishments.”
Other musical performers at the event included Jessica Reynoso, a finalist in the first season of The Voice of the Philippines. Calling her “the next big star from the Philippines,” apl. de.ap served as her mentor during the widely watched first edition of the musical competition. They also sang a few numbers together.
Another much-applauded performer was Princess Ybañez, a violinist in the mold of Vanessa Mae, who modernized classical violin pieces to reach a wider and younger audience.
The VPA2016 global launch was part of the DOT’s activities during the World Travel Market (WTM) 2015, held from November 2 to 5 at the ExCel in London. About 5,000 exhibitors participate in this leading travel event to showcase their destinations, products and services. According to its web site, “the organizations use WTM as a platform to reach 50,000 travel professionals” who were expected to flock to the show.
Exhibitors were organized in two massive halls by geographical region: Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, the UK and Ireland, as well as “Global Village.” The Philippines has been attending the annual event since 1980, when the WTM was first conceived.
In a related development, TPB COO Domingo Ramon Enerio III told the BusinessMirror that the Philippines will be hosting the Travel Bloggers Exchange (Tbex) from October 13 to 16 next year at the PICC in Pasay City. “We’re expecting 700 delegates. We believe that social media is an effective tool to send out more good news and stories about travelling in the Philippines.”
After the main event, he said the bloggers will travel to different appealing destinations around the country, such as Boracay, Cebu, Palawan, to name a few. “We’re still finalizing the dates for the post-event trips, but definitely this will be all over the Philippines,” he added.
