Santorini-inspired community to rise in Boracay

On its own, Boracay is undoubtedly one of the major tourism spots in the Philippines, drawing millions of local and foreign tourists to the island each year. But what happens when an island as famous as Boracay gets a new tourism-oriented master planned community inspired by the majestic Santorini, one of the best isles in the Aegean sea?

The possibilities are just endless.

Alliance Global Inc (AGI), owned by business tycoon Andrew Tan is building the Boracay Newcoast, the Santorini-inspired tourism community that will span about 140 hectares or about 14 percent of the island.

The planned Boracay Newcoast is part of the P5 billion investment poured by AGI to newly formed Global Estates Resorts Inc. (GERI), which will handle the company's island tourism estates.

Based on the master plan, Boracay Newcoast will have seven clusters, including a hotel cluster, with its four international hotel brands and one local hotel. These hotels are Remington, Maxim, Hilton and the Marriot.

The cluster is expected to have 1,500 new hotel suites with access to a private beach. Once operational, AGI said the hotel cluster will help increase Boracay's tourist arrivals from 900,000 this year to about 1.75 million in 2016.

The community will also have a leisure center.

Boutique hotels are also planned for another district, with their own stretch of private beach.

Tourists can stock up on island souvenirs and partake on the freshest seafood feats at the planned Shophouse district.

The center of the project is the grand plaza called Newcoast Station. This will serve as the entertainment and take off point towards other clusters.

One of the highlights of the planned community, the Newcoast Village will also be constructed to cater to a select few who intend to make Boracay their second home, just as Santorini's villas have sheltered families across generations. The Newcoast Village is the first and only subdivision to be offered in Boracay.

Those who have the means to purchase these villas can draw inspiration from the ocean villas of Santorini, Bali, Phuket or Bahamas for the architectural design of their homes.

Another major cluster of the community is the exclusive ocean villas. This cluster rests beside Hole No. 1 of Fairways and Bluewater, an 18-hole Graham Marsh par-72 championship golf course. This will be located adjacent to the international hotels.

Initial plans likewise indicated that Newcoast Drive, the main road of Boracay Newcoast measuring 2.5 kilometer will comprise the first phase of the project. This will be completed in 12-18 months.

Construction on the remaining phases of the community will then follow

The soft launch for Boracay Newcoast was held in late 2011 but no fixed timetable for the entire community will depend on public demand.

Read More

Things Every Great Hotel Does

Travel is wonderful thing. You can visit new places and have enriching experiences. You also have the opportunity to stay in some wonderful lodging establishments. Here are things every great hotel does:

• Treat Guests Like Friends – When staying at a hotel, you can quickly realize whether hotel management truly cares about your well-being and your lodging experience, or if they treat you like are just a number for maximizing profits. In treating guests like friends, a hotel makes a customer feel at home and adds a high level of comfort to their stay. Great hotels treat customers politely and respectfully. They sincerely and emphatically listen to any questions and concerns from a customer. They are attentive and ensure that customers will have a happy and peaceful stay, just like a true friend would do.
• Extra Services – Great hotels will always serve their customers far beyond the bare minimum requirements. They will provide extra service that lets you know that they truly care. They may leave a gift basket in your hotel room or chocolates on your pillow. They will ask questions about your vacation plans and make travel suggestions that are catered to your personal needs. If someone in your party has a birthday or you are celebrating an anniversary, they will do something special or unexpected to honor your special event.
• Well-Informed Staff – Every great hotel will have staff that is knowledgeable about features of interest in the surrounding area. They will be an excellent source of information for all things related to your stay. If they don't know or can't give an immediate answer to your question, they will take the time to do the necessary research and get back to you with an appropriate answer. They will also do everything they can to understand your personal needs in a non-intrusive way and provide excellent personalized service as result.
• Great Amenities – Great hotels will have great amenities that not only enhance your stay, but also help ensure that your daily routines and lifestyle needs are not disrupted as a result of staying away from your home environment. The hotel will have a reliable Wi-Fi Internet connection, so that you can stay in touch with friends and family and take care of any personal or business needs. They will provide such items as quality toiletries, bathrobes. corkscrews for wine, and appliances such as a hair drier or coffeemaker. They will have a good fitness center with weight machines, treadmills, free weights, and stair climbers. They will also have a clean and atmospheric pool, Jacuzzi, and sauna.
• No Surprise Charges – One of the best features of great hotels is not so much what they do, but what they don’t do. It is such a stomach turning feeling to look at a bill at the end of your stay and see a charge of $10 for a bottle of water or $50 for using a fitness center. Great hotels won't change exorbitant prices for basic necessities, services, and amenities. They will be honest and upfront with their pricing and won't hit you will unexpected charges.

Perhaps you are interested in pursuing a career in the hospitality industry. You can learn about some key points for becoming a hospitality manager, as well as information on educational opportunities that will help you achieve your career goals.

Sources

Going Global (2012)
eHow (2012)
About.com (2012)

Read More

A short but memorable visit to Nagoya

me in front of Nagoya castle

Growing up, I have always dreamed of visiting Japan and I have always been grateful that this dream came true, several times already.

I have roamed the streets of Tokyo, Kyoto, Hokkaido, and the industrialized and very modern city of Nagoya.

Thanks to some corporate friends, I was able to visit Nagoya and explore both its very modern and ancient attractions that make it one of the most popular and important cities in all of Japan.

Nagoya is a major city of the Chubu region and is the capital of Aichi Prefecture. It is one of the most populous cities in Japan thanks to big companies and industries available in the city. It is also one of the most important ports.

facade of marriott associa hotel

My trip to Nagoya consisted of several meetings with business partners during the first few days but I was able to do some sightseeing as well during the tail end of the trip.

Thanks to my generous host, I stayed in the Marriott Associa hotel, a two story hotel which is located just on top of the JR Central Towers Nagoya station, the easiest access to the bullet trains.

To easily locate the hotel, just look for the two tall cylindrical towers from the Nagoya skyline.

During my tour, I was able to visit Nagoya Castle, which is easily the most famous and most visited landmark in the city.

Originally built in 1612, Nagoya Castle is one of the testaments to the power of the clan of powerful warlord Oda Nobunaga, who, along with his protege Tokugawa Ieyasu led the Tokugawa era of Japan. This era, was mainly the period of Japan's unification.

philippine pavilion, 05 world expo

As the history books say, Nagoya is the main stronghold of the Tokugawa clan.

The castle is popular because of the golden tiger-headed carp, a symbol of Nagoya, which is found on the castle's roof.

I also visited the Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology as well as the Toyota Automobile Museum which houses some cool, over the top cars, I can only dream of owning.

me at the automobile museum

We also toured around the site of the 2005 Aichi World Expo.The expo is the grandest showcase of what each country has to offer and it happens every five years. The last World Expo 2010 was held in Shanghai.

I wanted to go to the Atsuta Shrine which supposedly houses the mythical Kusanagi sword  (Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven) but time constraints prevented us from doing so. The sword is one of three Imperial Regalia of Japan. However, no man has seen it.

Japanese believe it's being kept at Atsuta Shrine but it is not available for public viewing.

All in all, I had a great time in this very busy but enchanting city.

Read More

Dusit Thani Manila unveils "Vertical Garden"

If you are quite familiar with Dusit Thani Manila, one of the most luxurious and prestigious hotels in Makati, then surely, you would have noticed the great improvement in the hotel's facade, thanks to their newly unveiled "vertical gardens".
 
Fresh from its $20 million renovation campaign, Dusit Thani Manila, recently launched its Vertical Garden, an industry first concept, which aims to further enhance the hotel's aesthetics while also adhering to global environmental standards.

Inspired by the vertical garden concept of French designer Patrick Blanc, Dusit Thani Manila unveiled its very own 'vertical garden' design for its driveway. 

Designer Grace Eleazar shares that the vertical garden specifically lowers the temperature at the driveway of Dusit Thani especially during the afternoon when the sun rays hit the entrance. At the same time, the water feature helps cool the air that passes through the open spaces between walls.

While the vertical garden landscape has been done in many countries, Dusit Thani Manila is the first player in the Philippine hotel industry to adopt such concept.

This is part of the hotel's continuing efforts to comply and exceed environmental standards for hotels.

Just recently, Dusit Thani received a Silver certification for 2012 by EarthCheck, a globally renowned organization that grades environmental standards.

"After being one of the pioneer recipients in the Philippines of this prestigious EarthCheck certification, the Vertical Garden project is another true testament of Dusit Thani Manila's thrust to always be ahead of the curve in implementing initiatives that adhere to global environmental standards," says general manger Prateek Kumar who also shares the hotel's other environmental efforts such as the Dusit Green Hour, and an Eat Well, Feel well menu.

Read More

Richmonde Hotel and Tower to Rise in Iloilo in 2013

rendering for Richmonde Hotel and Tower

Beginning next year, tourists flocking to the province of Iloilo in Southern Philippines will have a new option for their accommodations as Megaworld Corporation completes its 12-storey Richmonde Hotel and Richmonde Tower.

Located inside a 54.5 hectare land, Richmonde Hotel and Richmonde Tower are just a component of the planned Iloilo Business Park, along with two BPO towers.

The project site is the location of the former Iloilo airport which Megaworld acquired from the government at an amount of P1.2 billion or about $20 million dollars.

The 12-storey hotel will host 90 guest rooms, ranging from superior rooms to junior suites. The seventh level amenities deck will feature a lap pool, children's pool and fitness center while the business center on the same level will include meeting rooms and a conference room.

Richmonde Hotel Iloilo is the third hotel under the brand.

Groundbreaking ceremonies for the hotel started as early as May 2011 and the construction of the Ricmonde Hotel and Richmonde Tower will be completed by next year.


Megaworld said the hotel will primarily cater to businessmen and tourists "who flock annually to witness Iloilo City's historic and colorful festivals"

Meanwhile, the planned Richmonde Tower will occupy the second to sixth floors of the hotel, and will be dedicated to BPO companies who will locate in the business park. Iloilo City is now one of the major BPO hubs in the country.

Read More

Room Discounts until June 30 from Waterfront Hotels

If you are visiting Manila, Cebu or Davao and you are looking for a more affordable option for your hotel, then you are in luck as Waterfront Hotels and Casino launches its "Summer Great Room Sale" this entire month of May until June 30th.

Under the promo, customers can enjoy as much as 20 percent based on Waterfront's online best available rate.

A separate promotion, meantime, also gives you further discounts if you book seven days ahead.

Waterfront Hotels operates hotels in Cebu (Mactan and Cebu City), the Waterfront Insular Hotel in Davao and the Waterfront Manila Pavilion. The group also operates G hotel, a boutique hotel located along Roxas Boulevard.

Its biggest hotel is the one in Cebu City with about 561 guest rooms. It is located 30 minutes away from the Mactan International Airport

Read More

Visit Arena Island and help save the Turtles in Palawan

Blessed with breathtaking scenes and gorgeous natural wonders, the province of Palawan in Western Philippines has been a major tourist destination, rivaling the popularity and crowds of world-class Boracay island.

Major attractions in Palawan including the Puerto Princesa subterranean river and the beaches in Coron are just must-see sites that they attract travelers all year round, putting the province on the global travel map.

But unknown to many travelers, foreign and locals alike, there is a hidden gem of an island deep in the town of Narra, Palawan, which is also putting the province in a global eco-tourism and sustainable development map. 

Isla Arena, a 3.6 hectare island located in the South Central Sulu sea, has, for years, been a pioneering destination for the preservation of endangered turtles.

Surrounded by hectares of coral gardens and sea grass meadows, Isa Arena is an identified sanctuary for green turtles or pawikans but is home to about five of the seven known turtle species. But, the island is inhabited mainly by green turtles, leatherbacks and hawksbill turtles.

During the nesting season, about 200 turtle eggs are laid in the island's beach and they have an incubation of 45-50 days. The island retains hatchlings in float cages and releases them after a month when they are bigger. This practice ensures a better survival rate for the turtles.

This year, Isla Arena is giving supporters a chance to enjoy a three-day, two night stay in the island and actually experience/participate in the islands turtle conservation efforts through its recently launched "Click to Save" Facebook contest.

Facebook users are encouraged to 'Like" Arena Island's fan page (www.facebook.com/arenaisland) and change his/her profile to one of Arena's campaign badges. Choose from "Rescue me from becoming a belt or shoe' or "Save us from turning into soup' and other statements committing support for pawikan conservation. 

Tag five friends in the profile picture and have them "Like" Arena's FB fan page too. The campaign runs until May 31, 2012.

Organizers hope to generate at least 5,000 'Likes" which will then be considered as online supporters of the island's turtle conservation program. They will then draw a winner from the online supporters for an all-expense paid trip to the Island.

Louie Morales, Arena Island Marketing Director said "Let us grow the numbers of people who will care for the pawikans".

For his part, Arena Island Owner and Director Fuji Rodriguez stressed that "there is no better place to know more about these lovely creatures that are currently considered as endangered species than on Arena Island"

Read More

Skyjet begins flights to Batanes, to help boost tourism industry

A lighthouse in Batan Island from BCTA

Virtually untouched and unspoilt by the ravages of time and man-made technology, the province of Batanes in the northernmost tip of the Philippines, is one of the country's well-kept wonders.

Each of its ten islands offers dramatic cliffs and amazing rock formations overlooking wide terrains of grass fields. Houses are built using limestones rocks to guard against the onslaught of several typhoons.

Main attractions include the Chavayan Heritage House, the church in Sabtang, House of Sakay and the ruins of Sungsung among others.

Batanes also attracts tourists thanks to the rich Spanish influence that is still visible in the province's many churches including the San Jose Obrero Church in Ivana, Sabtang; San Carlos Borromeo Church in Mahatao (1873); Sto. Domingo Cathedral in Basco (the oldest built in early 18th century); and, Sta. Maria Immaculada (1845) in Itbayat.


As a province isolated from the mainland Luzon, the people of Batanes called the Ivatans live peaceful, simple lives with farming their main source of livelihood.

Church in Ivana from Batanes Online

But despite its natural wonders, Batanes remains a far less popular destination among local and foreign travelers mainly because of the lack of available flights flying from Manila to its capital city of Basco. At present, local airline Seair flies to Basco but it could not completely accommodate the growing demand for flights to Batanes.

All that is about to change as another flight service commences its flights to Basco beginning this month.

Starting April 8,  Skyjet will operate flights to Basco, Batanes three times a week at affordable rates in order to boost the tourism industry of the province, while catering to the demands of local and foreign travelers who wish to experience a combination of natural wonder and rich cultural heritage that Batanes offers.

 Joel Mendoza of SkyJet and the director of the Batanes Cultural Travel Agency (BCTA), revealed that the Skyjet planes purchased from the United Kingdom "are built for short and unpaved runways like the 1,200 meter airstrip of the Basco airport.

Skyjet manufacturer BAe Systems, is a British-registered company that also produces the air crafts for use of the British Royal family, British airlines, Lufthansa and other Europe-based airlines.

 

Meanwhile, BCTA is also offering affordable packages that cater to various classes in order to further boost the tourist arrivals in Batanes.

Here are their packages

Read More

Philippines to extend visa-free policy to 30 days

If you have plans of traveling to the Philippines anytime soon, then you may be one of the lucky visitors who may enjoy better visa deals when entering the country.

In a recent announcement, the Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) shared that it is planning to extend the visa-free privileges of about 166 countries from 21 to 30 days. This blanket policy will include a 30-day visa-free stay to Chinese nationals.

The DOT is also considering a 14-day visa-free stay for Indian nationals who have a valid American, Japan, Australian, Canadian Shengen, Singapore or UK visas.

The tourism departments said such looser visa policies may soon be implemented, in order to attract much needed tourists into Philippine shores.

Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez said that other  neighboring Asean nations such as Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia already implement the 30-day visa-free privileges to visiting tourists expect for nationals of Asean-member countries who already enjoy visa-free privileges.

Mr. Jimenez, however, declined to give specifics on the actual start of the new policies, noting that it will seek final consultation with the Bureau of Immigration and the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Read More

PAL eyeing Cebu-Darwin and Manila-Bali routes

Filipinos may soon be able to fly from the province of Cebu, Southern Philippines to Darwin, Australia this year if plans of  the national flag carrier Philippine Air Lines (PAL) pushes through.

News reports quote PAL president Jaime Bautista saying that the airline is indeed looking at the possibility of mounting direct flights to Darwin, which is the capital city of the northern territory of Australia.

PAL presently flies to Sydney.

PAL is considering the flights to Darwin as part of the airlines measures to increase passengers by 10 to 12 percent in 2012 and achieve fiscal recovery.

Darwin, Australia is one of the most vibrant cities in the northern territory and tourists often go there to visit the renowned Mindil beach and the nudist Casuarina beach.

From Cebu, the flight would only take less than four hours, Bautista said, noting that the airline may use the Airbus A320, one of the smallest planes on its fleet, for the flights.

At the same time, PAL is also conducting feasibility studies on the profitability of mounting direct flight from Manila to Denpasar, Indonesia to take advantage of the throngs of Filipinos visiting the world-renowned island of Bali.

The Manila-Denpasar route is also expected to encourage travelers to extend their route to the Philippines instead of the usual banana pancake route.

Visitors traveling around Southeast Asia usually visit Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia for their regional trips.

Read More