Samal posts 22% increase in arrivals

By CHARLES RAYMOND A. MAXEY
TOURIST arrivals in the Island Garden City of Samal (Igacos) reached 680,064 in 2014 for an increase of 154,297 or 22.69 percent up from the previous year’s record of 525,767.
Of the 2014 record, 650,614 are domestic tourists while 29,450 are foreign visitors.
But, Igacos tourism officer Jennifer Cariaga noted an increase in the total number of foreign visitors last year compared to the 2013 record.
For overnight tourists, Samal recorded 17,208 foreign visitors in 204, or a huge increase of 186 percent as against the 2013 record of only 6,014.
Domestic visitor arrivals posted only 31.56 percent from 181,959 in 2013 to 239,397 in 2014.
For this year, Cariaga said they are targeting a 10 percent increase in tourist arrival when they stage the fifth year of their Visit Samal Islands2015 tourism campaign.
The Visit Samal Islands 2015 is a joint project of the Igacos LGU, Samal Island Tourism Council and the Department of Tourism (DOT) 11 and will run from April 10 to May 31, 2015.
The campaign features big discounts, special promos and packages of beach resorts and inland attractions all over Samal.
The project also involves staging of major events and eco-activities is Samal.