BOHOL is known for the famous Chocolate Hills, Panglao, and the cute little creature, Tarsier. But the island has so much more to offer other than those things mentioned.
On your next vacation, why not try something new—something adventurous and educational, just like when you went on your grade school field trips. This time, instead of a bus, take a plane from the Metro.
It is very good to know that many people know about Chocolate Hills and Panglao Island. More tourists mean greater income for the Boholanos because of the opportunities in promoting their products. There is negative effect, however. The tourist spots are slowly becoming soiled and too commercialized.
Commercialism is basically not bad, but as they say, anything that goes beyond the limit is deadly.
So, instead of limiting the number of visitors in the tourist spots, the Tourism Office of Bohol thought of a way to equally distribute them among the different places in Bohol and allow them more opportunities to experience various activities there. The places may be ordinary to Boholanos, but they are definitely new to foreign tourists and, of course, to wanderlust Pinoys. And to promote the “other face of Bohol,” the Ecotourism Bohol Program was launched.
Ecotourism Bohol offers what they call the “Bohol Surprise Tour.”
From P800 to P5,500, minimum of two persons, you can already have a whole-day tour in the other face of Bohol, inclusive of land transportation, entrance fees and Department of Tourism accredited tour guide. In the Bohol Surprise Tour you will be able to visit the following places: Tubigon Loom Weaving, Loon Coral Stairs, Maribojoc Organic Demo Farm, Savima Mangrove Adventure, Punta Cruz Watch Tower, Lamanoc Island, Anda White Beach, Jagna and Albur Calamay Industry, Clarin Ancestral House, Loay Ironsmith Workshop, Balay sa Humay, Bohol Biodiversity Complex and Cabilao Island.
In lieu of the Bohol Surprise Tour, you can mix and match the places that you want to visit and choose from several packages.
From the time the project was launched, the number of tourists in Bohol grew from 333,532 in 2010 to 481,736 in 2015, according to the statistical report presented by the Bohol Tourism Office. The top 5 visitors were Koreans, Chinese, Americans, Japanese and Germans.
During my visit to Bohol, I was able to experience a part of the Surprise Tour. I visited the Maribojoc Demo Farm, where we had lunch and the Savima Mangrove Board Walk. I also had a chance to visit the Tubigon Loom Weaving, where they make the loom-weaved cloth for different international hotels. I was also able to visit the shop where weaved baskets of Antiquera are sold.
Ecotourism Bohol is funded and supported not only by the local government, but also by the Japanese International Cooperation Agency and their volunteers. The Japanese love the Philippines so much that they are very willing to help the country grow. Currently, the Bohol Tourism Office has one volunteer that helps them promote the tourism project.
“Bohol has nothing. We only have nature. We don’t have big industry. We only have agriculture and tourism,” said Josephine R. Cabarrus, head of the Bohol Tourism Office.
Truly, Bohol is a place for nature lovers. If you are fortunate enough to explore it, you will find yourself immersed in the very accommodating, warm and friendly Boholano culture.