The Department of Tourism in Central Luzon has named the Subic Bay Freeport in Zambales as the 4th best destination in the country in 2015.
It is only bested by no less than Cebu, Davao and Camarines Sur, respectively, according to DOT regional director Ronaldo P. Tiotuico in a press statement issued recently.
In a partial report submitted by the Research and Planning Division of the tourism department, Tiotuico said Subic Bay Freeport made big strides in hosting some 1.627M domestic and foreign visitors in 2015, while hosting some P1.265M visitors in 2014, marking an increase of 28%.
Tiotuico attributed such a success to the collective determination of the entire manpower of the SBMA under the leadership of Chairman Roberto Garcia, who was instrumental in developing Subic as a major tourist destination in this part of the region. The tourism department on the other hand is led by its manager Jem A. Camba.
For her part, Camba said Subic has become a favorite location for water sports tourism and nature-related activities. Its convention center has a capacity of 10,000 seats – a favorite venue for international events and conferences. The entire province of Zambales has a total room capacity of 3,418 and of this number some 1,279 rooms belong to Subic Bay Freeport.
Camba noted the Freeport’s well-preserved eco-tourism destination with triple-canopied rainforests and mangroves, mountain trails and indigenous culture, nature-based theme parks and bird-watching sites.
“Subic may just be the number one destination in the near future as we now await the full transformation of Clark International Airport as a major hub for both international and domestic airlines,” Camba said.
The DOT region office, Tiotuico said, “has always recommended the partnering of Clark and Subic as one great holistic destination – the two being connected by a world-class seamless freeway, the SCTEX.”
Its tourism department recently participated in the Asia Cruise Tourism Forum in Jeju, South Korea to share with the world tourism community the potential of Subic as an emerging pivotal hub for international cruise tourism, he added.
Apart from all these, Subic has now become the center for any and all activities: eco-tourism, sports and adventure, dive sites, MICE destination, location shoot venue, duty-free shopping, night life, ideal for senior living, among others.
Among the rest of the top ten destinations in 2015 include Boracay, Albay / Legazpi City, Metro Manila, Clark / Pampanga, Laguna and Benguet / Baguio.