Santa Fe, Philippines- On one side, the Anika Island Resort faces a mesmerizing stretch of blue sea and on the other three sides; it faces the destruction caused by the recent typhoon. On the other three, it faces the remains of homes and coconut palms minced by wind into the white sand. The hotel is the only one of 32 to escape the wrath of Typhoon Haiyan in Santa Fe, an idyllic tourist town on Bantayan Island destroyed by one of the world’s biggest storms.
The damage caused at this place reflects the damage to the tourism industry in many typhoon-hit parts of the Philippines since the category-5 super typhoon struck on Friday. Several tourists have been left stranded for days because of the storm, which has killed thousands of people who lived in the coastal city of Tacloban.
The scale of the storm and the destruction caused by has been in the international headlines for many weeks, which has caused fear among the tourists across the central Philippines and generating mass cancellations at resorts, though the record-breaking typhoon struck only six of the country’s 7,107 islands.
The resorts placed at the chief destinations like Boracay, Palawan, Cebu and Bohol, however, have been recording cancellation rates of 30 to 40 percent since the storm hit, said Cesar Cruz, president of the Philippine Tour Operators Association in Manila.
Over 400 tourists from 26 countries were stranded at Palawan alone, transforming the scuba-diving center with its dozens of striking islands into a horrific travel nightmare. Many were evacuated.
Anika’s owner, Nelson Yuvallos, feels that the survival of his hotel is due to the divine’s blessings, as he “prayed like Moses” that winds of nearly 315 km per hour (195 miles per hour) would part around it. Officials state that the across Santa Fe, nearly 95 percent of buildings were severely damaged.
“Tourism is the most significant thing here. It’s the only income,” Yuvallos said. Around 4,000 tourists visit the island, just off the northern tip of Cebu, in a regular month, peaking to 10,000 during the northern winter, he said.
However the local tourism has been lucky enough, as the ferries that ply across the mainland were back in operation within two days of the storm, taking the stranded tourists with them. “People assume that the entire Philippine is gone. The international media has created this impression, Philippine Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez told Reuters. “Actually the tourists who were meant for one place have been taken to another destination and it has been a success.”
However, bringing them back will be some challenge.A Squeeze on Tourism Hotel owners have resolved to try to reconstruct by December. As a long delay will allow tourists to opt for another palm-fringed destination. The mayor, Jose Titing Esgana, is less optimistic. “Reconstruction by December is a very high expectation,” he said.
Esgana stated tourism may only be able to resolve by the time of Easters. In the meantime, over 400 people will remain unemployed.Tourism is an increasing business in the Philippines, where the number of visitors climbed to 4.3 million last year from 3.9 million the year before. It generates about 5.9 percent of the fast-growing $250 billion economy.
Still No ShelterIn Sante Fe, almost all the fishing boats have been destroyed and the chickens, which would supply the entire province with eggs, are now being killed to feed the locals. At least the food aid is being provided through to the people, where till now, no shelter or reconstruction material has arrived for over 6,400 stranded families. The destruction is so severe that “the structure is totally zero”, Esgana said. “There is nothing to reconstruct with.”
Arsolin Ofiasa is trying to reconstruct the small shack where he lives with his pregnant wife and five of his seven children. The shack was almost completely flattened on Friday and was saved only by a sturdy wooden cabinet. Now, he is recovering nails form the wrecked planks of his house, in hope to reconstruct a firmer structure into the previous place. He claims, “All I want is to be able to rebuild a house and live decently, and I hope for mercy for my children.” Ref:
http://www.firstpost.com/world/on-idyllic-philippine-island-typhoon-haiyan-hints-at-tourism-loss-1229965.html
