The Department of Tourism in the Ilocos Region (DOT-1) aims to hit over five million tourist arrivals by 2028 through various programs and infrastructure projects.

DOT-1 officer-in-charge Evangeline Dadat, in a forum hosted by the Philippine Information Agency Ilocos Region in San Fernando City, La Union on Tuesday, said they aim to register PHP6 billion tourism receipts and 30,000 direct job within this period.

“DOT Ilocos remains steadfast in its mission to generate quality employment opportunities by diversifying our tourism offering and promoting both established and emerging destinations,” she said.

DOT recorded about 1.8 million tourist arrivals, with PHP3 billion in tourist receipts, in 2024.

Dadat, however, noted that these figures came from only 53 percent of the local government units (LGUs) in the region.

She, thus, underscored the need to provide personnel of LGUs and tourism establishments training to increase compliance on data submission.

In line with the Philippine Experience of the DOT, the regional office launched in 2023 the May-Kan, a gastronomy tour to promote food tourism.

According to the DOT, May-Kan was taken from the Iloko and Pangasinan words “umay” or to come from one place to another, and “makan”, which means food.

Ilocos Region will also join the Terra Madre Salone del Gusto Asia and the Pacific in November this year to promote gastronomy tourism in the region, she added.

Under health and wellness tourism, Dadat said they are mapping potential sites in the region to develop tour packages, citing Balungao, Pangasinan and Cervantes, Ilocos Sur as among the areas being considered.

“Tourists visited the country for medical tourism availing dental holidays, beauty travel, fertility intervention, and wellness vacation,” she said.

In 2024, the booming industry in the country attracted over 200,000 tourists from Guam, Papua New Guinea, United States, United Kingdom, Pacific Islands, Australia, and Hong Kong.

Dive tourism is also among the programs of DOT Ilocos Region, with 26 sites already identified as established and potential sites.

Dadat said they are validating and checking these areas to also create tour packages.

A bird watching event has been lined up for this month, in time with the spring migration season.

The event will be held from Adams in Ilocos Norte to Mangatarem in Pangasinan, Dadat said.

Earlier, DOT-1, in partnership with Pangasinan, La Union, Ilocos Sur, and Ilocos Norte LGUs launched a new historical tour circuit aimed at promoting the region’s rich cultural heritage.

The initiative, which includes a guidebook and historical trail, seeks to enhance historical awareness and foster patriotism, particularly among younger generations.

The historical trail is based on a guidebook developed by Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University (DMMMSU), featuring key historical sites across the four provinces.

These sites highlight significant events from pre-Spanish times to the Spanish colonial era, American rule, World War II, and contemporary history.

Together with the province’s local tourism offices, they have identified shrines, churches, monuments, landmarks, historical sites, and national heritage sites including museums.

Dadat said DOT along with other national government agencies improved infrastructure, especially road networks leading to tourism destinations and other facilities.

“One of the President’s priorities is infrastructure development such as the Tourism Road Infrastructure Program (TRIP) to make tourist destinations accessible,” she said.

A total of 485.12 km. of road projects have been constructed from 2022 to 2023 in the country under TRIP, and an additional 46.4 km. as of June 2024.

In the region, there are 42 TRIP projects that are ongoing, Dadat said.

DOT is also constructing Tourist Rest Area (TRA) under the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), which would provide essential amenities such as a tourist information center, restrooms with persons with disability (PWD) and senior citizen access, breastfeeding station, charging and work area with internet, dining space, and Pasalubong Center, (a store that offers local items that tourists can bring home for keepsakes).

Sustainability features like solar-powered roofs and rain catchment systems will also be incorporated.

Dadat said a TRA is already operational in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte while another one is being constructed in Lingayen, Pangasinan. (PNA)