The city is all set for the next Davao megasale slated for 2015. The Department of Tourism (DOT) and the city government of Davao recently launched the Visit Davao Fun Sale at the SMX Convention Center Mall of Asia recently, with all Davao sectors throwing their full support for this unique destination-focused megasale.
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| The Visit Davao FUn Sale was officially launched in the recent Philippine Travel Mart at SMX MOA |
Leading the promotion launch was DOT Assistant Secretary for Mindanao, Art Boncato, and Davao City Tourism Operations Officer, Lisette Marques, in a grand Visit Davao Fun Sale exhibit showcasing the unique features—destinations from highlands to islands— of the country’s biggest city.
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| VIPs at the Davao Pavilion- Department of Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez, with CTOO Lisette Marques, DOT Asec Art Boncato & Counilor Al Ryan Alejandre. |
Visit Davao Fun Sale, the new concept of the megasale event offering huge discounts for Davao tour packages, is an offshoot of the Big Davao Fun Sale, an event that focused more on shopping as a tourism attraction. Shopping accounts for 22 percent of a visitor’s tourism spend, according to Boncato and Marques.
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| Davao tourism bigwigs, beauty queens & media- Sunstar columnist with Mutya ng Dabaw Francesca Noel Enriquez, DOT XI Chief Tourism Operations Officer Eden David, DOT Asec. Art Boncato, Edge Davao’s Kenneth Ong, travel blogger Olan Emboscado, Hiyas ng Kadayawan, Susan Batawan. |
“We are now eyeing all the activities that tourists spend for, not just shopping, because Davao has more to offer,” Boncato stressed, referring to the city’s more than ten shopping malls and numerous facilities for sports, entertainment, leisure and MICE (meetings, incentive travel, conventions, events/exhibitions), as well as the iconic cultural and natural attractions of Davao— Durian, the king of fruits; the Waling-waling, the queen of flowers; Philippine Eagle, the king of birds; the giant clam, the queen of the sea; the pomelo, the top take-home pick; Mt. Apo, the highest peak; and, the seafoods, which includes the tuna trademark dishes, as the top dining favor-eats.
Joining Boncato and Marques at the launch were Davao City Councilor Al Ryan Alejandre, who heads the City Council’s tourism committee, and the leaders of the Davao Association of Tour Operators (DATO), Davao Travel Agencies Association (DTAA), National Association of Independent Travel Agencies (NAITAS), and their umbrella organization Davao Tourism Association (DATA).
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| All set. DOT Asec. for Mindanao Art Boncato, Davao City Tourism Operations Officer Lisette Marques, Councilor Al Ryan Alejandre with the travel industry leaders of Davao at the Davao Pavilion of the recent Philippine Travel Mart at the SMX Mall of Asia. |
DATO president Pearly Luy Louh described the Visit Davao Fun Sale as “the complete inbound tours offering” based on its scope of coverage and industry participation, and NAITAS vice president Raissa Wynne Teo attributed the attractiveness of the “Sale” to its “lowest end-to-end travel rates ever” covering all city, countryside and island tours.
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| The megasale on Davao destination packages & accommodations at the Davao Pavilion |
“The Visit Davao Fun Sale is also being promoted by the association members’ outbound clients to their friends and relatives abroad,” shared Arnold King, DTAA president.
“A campaign of this magnitude was made possible through a strong partnership among the local government, DOT, tourism destinations, resorts, hotels, restaurants, malls, transport groups, airlines, and all the product and service providers in the city’s entire supply chain,” said DATA president Sally San Jose.
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| The best prices at the best places to stay in Davao. |
Boncato cited the Visit Davao Fun Sale as a tourism megasale of unprecedented proportions involving all sectors of the Davao. It gives the traveling public the chance to explore Davao at the most affordable rates by booking in advance.
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| MICE-meetings, incentive travel, conventions, events/exhibitions- will be more fun in Davao! |
“The megasale, which will run from April 3 to May 15 next year, will be Davao’s contribution to the Visit Philippines Year 2015. It can help the city break its 2013 double-digit record of 15.38-percent hike in domestic and foreign visitor volume to 1.5 million from 1.3 million in 2012,” Boncato pointed out.
For other details on the Visit Davao Fun Sale, interested parties may contact the DOT (email: dotr11@gmail.com; tel. 082-2210070 or 082-2216955) and look for Eden David or Vanezza Serrano.
For more lifestyle and travel stories, visit http://apples-and-lemons.blogspot.com/ and http://jeepneyjinggoy.blogspot.com/.
Published in the Sun.Star Davao newspaper on September 22, 2014.
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