The Davao City Council Committee on Tourism and the Department of Tourism in Davao Region are eyeing Sitio Datu Salumay in Barangay Marilog in the third district here as the city’s future tourism destination for domestic and foreign tourists.
“We are just starting to plan the cultural village but it is another possible new tourism offering for the city,” DOT-11 Regional Director Roberto Alabado said in an interview.
Alabado said members of the Davao Highland Homeowners Association are also coordinating with the local tribes since Datu Salumay is an ancestral domain area.
City councilor Al Ryan Alejandre, chair of the committee on tourism, said the Lumad village in Marilog is the newest site for the city’s tourism.
“We will showcase their culture and we will tap the barangay and promote their tourism products,” he said.
Alejandre said the city has to look for new tourism products and destinations if it wants to lure tourists to the city. The city has quality destinations such as the Philippine Eagle but we need new destinations to offer to tourists if we want to be competitive.
However, Alejandre urged the various barangays in the city to take an active role in identifying new tourism destinations since they are the ones who know their localities well.
“All barangay captains should submit tourism potential activities and destinations but sad to say, only a few manage to do this,” he said.
There is very little effort from the barangays to submit their tourism offerings to the city council, he added.
He commended the officials of Barangay Mintal since they were very aggressive in informing the council about the need to establish a Little Tokyo in the area and the project is doing good.
“We need to double time. We have edge because the President is from Davao but we have to promote the city and not just wait for tourists to come here,” he said.
Homestays are encouraged in Marilog since there are no hotels in the area, and these will help lower the cost for tourists. (PNA)