Hotel room shortfall at 32,000 – Tourism Dept

With its target of 10 million tourist arrivals in the Philippines by 2016, the Department of Tourism is facing a shortage of hotel rooms that now stands at 32,000. According to DOT director for tourism planning and promotions Cynthia Lazo, Metro Manila and the nearby Calabarzon region have a hotel room gap of 10,177—the largest gap nationwide. But the country's continuing economic growth should spur more investment and development in tourism, said Ayala Land Inc. vice president Junie Jalandoni.  We think this growth will continue…the [economic and tourist arrival] numbers are very encouraging,” he said at the launch of Holiday Inn and Suites Makati on Tuesday. “The projection is, for every one million additional tourists in the country, we need around 8,000 to 9,000 extra rooms,” Jalandoni also said. “There is a great interest in the Philippines and we plan to push through with other [hotel development] projects in the country to cater to a variety of brands,” said Intercontinental Hotels Group area general manager Christian Pirodon at the same event. The new Holiday Inn was the third hotel development in Makati to open in the last few months. Pirodon, who also heads the Makati Tourism Foundation, said that the growing number of hotel investments in the city will bolster plans to promote it as a hub for tourism as well as business. — BM, GMA News