EVEN as Baguio reopened to tourism and exceeded its local, self-set tourist entry quotas, some two-thirds of all lodging establishments in the city remain closed.
Tourism Operations Officer Aloysius C. Mapalo said that as of Monday, 800 lodging and hospitality establishments in the city remain closed which accounts for 67 percent of the 1,200 registered with Baguio’s local government.
Most of the closed establishments are small-scale accommodation businesses and facilities, with some of the bigger establishments such as prominent hotels faring better as tourism begins to pick up again.
Under the city’s current rules, no more than 2,000 tourists can be accommodated daily, with the limit based on how many people the city’s central triage facility at the Baguio Convention Center can handle.
“With the recent re-opening of the city to tourists, the local government is hopeful that the accommodation establishments that are not yet operational will be able to gradually and safely resume their operations with the expected influx of visitors, even if the number of travelers to the city is currently being limited to around 2,000 daily,” Mapalo said.
As of the first week of November, Mapalo said that the city already saw tourist numbers exceed the limits set by the city government, taking into account visitors who skip the central triage at the Baguio Convention Center.
The city has allowed more than 2,000 tourists in the past weekend, provided that the excess numbers are registered with and go straight to one of the city’s three hotels with their own triage, which is trained by and in compliance with the central triage’s own standards.
The three hotels in the city, namely Baguio Country Club, Camp John Hay Manor, and Forest Lodge, are allowed to take in visitors who do not go through central triage as they have their own facilities and were trained by the local government.
The city is currently open to tourists provided that they are fully vaccinated, and are able to present documentation proving vaccination status at the triage sites.
Negative test results are no longer needed as only fully vaccinated individuals may enter the city for leisure purposes.
