Travel Cruncher

MANILA, Philippines — If there is one cultural event that can truly be regarded as “more fun”, it can be no other than Hudyaka ZaNorte, the provincial festival of Zamboanga del Norte which celebrates its founding day.

“Hudyaka,” a Visayan word which means “merry-making”, was introduced in 2005 by Gov. Rolando Yebes to promote the province as a top tourist spot and investment hub in the bustling region of Zamboanga Peninsula (ZamPen).

Set on May 30 to June 9, the 10-day observance includes an assortment of socio-civic activities, agro-industrial fairs, indigenous and agri-games to revive traditional Filipino games and values.

There will also be a host of sporting tournaments to promote the province as a sports tourism haven.

Yebes said Hudyaka was introduced to showcase the province’s historical, cultural and natural heritage, and touristic potentials, as well as the good-natured and fun character of its people.

Because of its diverse “fun” components, Hudyaka sa ZaNorte was named by the Department of Tourism Region IX as the best festival in the region.

It also won 3rd Best Tourism Event Award in 2011(Provincial Category) of the Association Tourism Officers in the Philippines (ATOP).

With the theme “ZaNorte…60 years of Peace, Unity and Prosperity”, the festivities will also put to the fore the province’s up-and-coming tourist magnets.

ZaNorte is noted for Dapitan, dubbed as “Shrine City” where national hero Dr. Jose Rizal was exiled in 1892 allegedly for organizing a rebellion against Spain. Adding dazzle to the city is Dakak, a sought-after white sand cove.

A fringe event, the Indigenous Peoples Congress, opens the festivity on May 29 which will tackle tribal concerns, especially the vital provisions of Indigenous Peoples Representation Act

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MANILA, Philippines — There are several ways of reaching an exotic island destination – by plane, train, bus, ferryboat, or by helicopter.  I eagerly went all five ways.

Our team who went for a three-day city tour in Malaysia was split in half, and I was sent off with the second group to Langkawi, the farthest of three destinations.  Although there are direct flights from Kuala Lumpur to Langkawi via SilkAir, our group headed for a road adventure —probably inspired by the F1 Malaysian Grand Prix we just witnessed—and that was boarding a train for an overnight bunker ride to Penang, where the first group dropped off, and my group continued on for the next few hours to Kedah.

From there, a bus took us to the jetty where we boarded the ferry to our island destination.  The minute I saw the cluster of islets scattered like emerald gems in the Andaman Sea, this romantic getaway swept me off my feet.

Langkawi is a remarkable paradise which comprises 99 islands (104 at low tide) each with beautiful sandy shores, surrounded by pristine waters and lush rainforest, lying off the northwestern coast of Peninsular Malaysia in the Straits of Melaka, near the border of Thailand.

These mysterious islands are part of the state of Kedah (tagged as “Jewel of Kedah”), with the main island referred to as Pulau Langkawi.  Soaked in fascinating legends and intriguing folklores, the archipelago has been cited as a UNESCO Geopark in recognition of its amazing and significant geological history (fossils dating back millions of years ago!) and areas that cradle untouched paradise of age old forests teeming with undisturbed wildlife.  The park covers mountainous peaks of sandstone and limestone formations, karst topography, mystical caves, enchanting lakes,

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MANILA, Philippines — One visit and you will fall in love with this capital city of the historic province of Leyte. Tacloban, the largest city and regional center of Eastern Visayas, is the center of commerce, tourism, education, culture and government in the region.

“You can go island hopping in the white sand islands especially in Southern Leyte. There is Calanggaman Island, Canigao Island in Matalom and the Quatro Islas in Inopacan, Leyte. You can try the zipline in Agas Agas. You can visit San Juanico Bridge, the longest bridge in Asia. You can also check out the bars and restaurants in Tacloban City,” says actress-turned-public servant Cristina Gonzalez-Romualdez, a two-term councilor of the city.

Sparkling jet-black sandy beaches, a warm climate and even warmer people – these are the pride of Tacloban as stated in its official website. Some of the country’s most relaxing and beautiful beaches are here. The historical Red Beach is where General Douglas MacArthur made his famous return in 1944. It offers water activities like windsurfing. The Blue Beach in Dulag, where the Yellow, Orange and Violet beaches also are, have pure sands and pristine waters that have made them major tourist attractions. They were named as such by the

Allied Forces to mark the spots where they could make their landing. The most well-known of the color-coded beaches is the White Beach with its numerous resorts and hotels, facilities and beach houses.

The beaches at Digyo, Amihan Woodlands and Apid are also clean, well-preserved and beautiful. Digyo is one of the best diving/beach sites in Tacloban and Leyte, while Amihan Woodlands is the nature lover’s paradise with its coconut trees, acacia, mangroves and amazing coastline. Apid is an ideal swimming place

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MANILA, Philippines — A trip to Tagaytay, at least for the young and restive, almost always starts with a spontaneous urge to drive, looking out for the first bite of cold, windows rolled down. Roads getting steeper, trees older; wayside stands for flowers, plants, fruits and furniture, appearing one by one. The road banks and suddenly you’re at the rotonda. Jackets on, hoods up — just to turn to the nearest 24-hour fast food to grab a burger.

Ironically, as much as Tagaytay is considered a quick escape, the mountain city is slowly morphing into an extended leisure area of, say, Makati or Taguig. And while tourism and business developments are always welcome in any metropolis, these changes somehow obscure the intrinsic charm that has made Tagaytay one of the finest leisure destinations in the country. After all, there’s more to Tagaytay than cold weather.

Recently, Alveo Land invited members of the media to the other side of the Tagaytay ridge, far-off the busy Aguinaldo Highway, for a one-of-a-kind Five Senses Tour. “We conceptualized this tour because we wanted to celebrate what we’ve always loved about Tagaytay, the cool ambiance, the authenticity of home-cooked fares and the relaxing sound of nature,” shared Eunice Acejo, Marketing Head of Alveo Land.

Indeed, colors, textures, tastes, scent and sounds, every sensation seems to be intensified by the crisp air of cool Tagaytay. So the next time you feel like driving up the city for a Mushroom Burger or a cup of coffee in Bag of Beans, here are five virtually undiscovered spots that you might want to see:

Sight Stop: Moon Garden

The Moon Garden is a mysterious, slightly

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 Join the Manila Bulletin Lifestyle and Entertainment Sections’ Write-to-Fame and get the world to read your travel story and movie review in the country’s most widely distributed broadsheet newspaper!

1. The travel article is a first-person account of your favorite local travel destination, and should not exceed 500 words.  Photos of the writer in the local destination (original and not copied and re-touched) being written about should be submitted together with the article.

2. The movie review article shall be about a movie shown in commercial theatres over the last 15 days. It should not be longer than 400 words.

3. All submitted articles must be the original work of the writer-sender, and should not have been copied or adapted from other sources.  It should also have a title that summarizes the main message.

4. All articles must be submitted by email to mbpromos@mb.com.ph and should contain the complete name of the sender, mailing address and contact number.

5. There shall be one weekly winner for each category (travel and movie review). Submission of entries begins on May 7 and ends on July 5.

6. Each winner shall be awarded two (2) Ayala Cinema tickets (Metro Manila only), which may be claimed from the Manila Bulletin main office in Intramuros or the Manila Bulletin branch nearest to the winner’s residence.

7. The winning travel story shall be published in the Lifestyle section’s Travel page. The winning movie review shall be published in the Entertainment section.  Publication shall be at least one (1) week after the weekly judging.

8. Winners will be officially notified by phone and by e-mail.

9. Manila Bulletin reserves the right to evaluate all submitted articles, to disqualify plagiarized articles without any obligation to inform the sender, and to name the winners

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MANILA, Philippines — Travel buffs these days no longer just travel to see a particular place; they travel because they want to join events, like fun runs and triathlon races, or to try the newest spa in a secluded island somewhere in the archipelago, as well. In short, traveling is now synonymous with the keep-fit-and-healthy department.

This was the observation of Joni Lim, assistant vice president-SBU head of The Primer Group of Companies, which owns and operates The Travel Club, a concept store that specializes in travel gear.

And, recently, the company is embarking on a series of travel fairs—dubbed Mad About Travel—nationwide. “We have a travel fair in the Abreeza Mall in Davao on April 27-29, [while we scheduled another one at the] Ayala Center Cebu on July 22-29. The last [leg for this year] will be at the Glorietta [shopping center] in Makati City on October 12-14,” shared Lim.

The Primer Group of Companies has long been organizing annual, office-based, mini travel fairs for its VIP clients. But, for this year, it seems that the group has sensed the potential of Filipinos as certified travel aficionados.

“We’re bringing [the travel fair] out to the general public because we want to encourage more people to travel,” Lim said in an interview during the kick-off of The Travel Club’s Mad About Travel fair at the TriNoma Mall in Quezon City. “When a person travels, it really opens his eyes and he sees more, experiences more and learns more. So that’s what we want people to [enjoy].”

In an increasingly online community, it is highly possible

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In January 2012, visitor arrivals reached a record-breaking high of 411,064 representing a double digitl gain of 17 percent for the same month last year – a historic feat for the Philippine tourism industry and, according to Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez, a very good figure to kick-start the year.

And while South Korea remained the biggest supplier of visitors at 102, 166 chalking up 24 percent of the total visitor volume to the country, visitors from the United States and Overseas Filipino Workers or Filipinos permanently residing abroad were bth very significant markets contributing 63,160 and 15,531 arrivals respectively in the total inbound traffic.

With the return of the United Airlines, Inc. (UAL) – the world’s largest airline operating an average of 5,717 flights a day to 373 airports on six continents from Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Guam, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Tokyo and Washington DC – to the Philippines last year, there will be more seat capacity for passengers originating in Manila and Americans traveling to the country.

“We see a major growth of inbound American tourists to the Philippines this year,” said James Mueller, UAL Asia/Pacific vice president. “The Philippines is a very unique market.

Although UAL primarily caters to business travelers, a big percentage of our customers from the country are homecoming Overseas Filipino Workers or Filipino residents visiting their families abroad. But lately, we’ve seen growing numbers of Americans coming to the Philippines to experience its beauty and world-class offerings as well.”

“All the islands in Micronesia are exceptional but one of the best is the Philippine’s Palawan Island,” said Barry Bergmann, UAL Micronesia and Southeast Asia Managing Director.

“I’ve been there a number of times, a lot of nice places for diving,

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