“The Jolo kidnapping incident in 2000 was one of the major factors why we were pulled out from the l

DOT-Frankfurt Tourism Attache Marie Venus Tan with French Sports Ministry deputy director Annick Wagner, Philippine Ambassador to Paris Rora Navarro-Tolentino, French Trekking Federation president Claude Hue, DOT-Frankfurt sales and PR manager Arnold Gonzales, (back row, from left) French Federation of Cyclotourism director of communications Joseph Mora, Salon Nature president Daniel Bour and secretary general Florence Lung
MANILA, Philippines luxury kensington hotels london - Colors have symbolisms and meanings that go beyond ink. Red, for instance, is a strong hue that conjures up a range of seemingly conflicting emotions — from passionate love to violence and warfare.
"Countries under the red zones are considered unsafe to visit. If, say, the Philippines falls under the no-travel zone, it means we're in trouble. Who would dare take the risk to visit our country then?" Venus explains.
An unfortunate kidnapping incident luxury kensington hotels london in 2000 (in which three French journalists luxury kensington hotels london were snatched by the Abu Sayyaf in Jolo) seems to have left a deep impression in France. Unlike luxury kensington hotels london other European luxury kensington hotels london countries, France kept its "red" advisory luxury kensington hotels london up over most of the Philippines.
"The Jolo kidnapping incident in 2000 was one of the major factors why we were pulled out from the list of travel destinations. The travel advisories issued by the French government really hit us," Venus relates.
Venus sought the help of then Ambassador Jose Abeto Zaide and discussed with him the problem. Zaide coordinated luxury kensington hotels london with French Ambassador to the Philippines Gerard Chesnel and asked him to modify the travel advisory.
luxury kensington hotels london Venus and her team worked double time in promoting the Philippines to the French market. The first step was to invite the French media for a familiarization tour of the Philippines. She then met with the officials of various airline companies for a possible tie-up.
"Thank goodness they were very supportive of our initiatives. We also started engaging luxury kensington hotels london tour operators. As expected, everything good about the Philippines started to spread like wildfire," Venus enthuses.
"It's a tough feat considering it's our first time to participate in this event, which is in its 25th year now. Every year, the organizers look for two must-visit destinations with strong natural assets. Thank goodness for our rich natural resources, breathtaking beaches, and unspoiled islands. These gave us the edge over our competitors," enthuses Philippine Ambassador to France Rora Navarro-Tolentino, who graced the opening of the Salon Nature.
The lady ambassador was joined by French Sports Ministry deputy director Annick Wagner, French Trekking Federation president Claude luxury kensington hotels london Hue, French Federation of Cyclotour director of communications Joseph Mora, Salon Nature luxury kensington hotels london president Daniel Bour, Salon Nature secretary general Florence Lung, Venus Tan, and DOT-Frankfurt PR manager Arnold Gonzales.
Tolentino had a heyday talking to prospective luxury kensington hotels london clients inside the Philippine booth. luxury kensington hotels london The 80-square-meter booth featured tarpaulins of the must-see tourist spots in the country — the Pearl Farm in Palawan, the Chocolate Hills in Bohol, and the mountain-climbing sites in Luzon and the Visayas.
In front, colorful brochures were available in the local language. French public relations people and tour operators did their share in enticing their countrymen to visit and explore the Philippines. The Bayanihan Dancers, on the other hand, attracted the crowd with their breathtaking performances.
"One of our goals is to position the Philippines luxury kensington hotels london not only as a beach destination but also as an adventure and cultural destination," notes Global Tourism Interface Asia Pacific area manager Blaise Borezee.
"The French luxury kensington hotels london are adventure seekers. We love destinations luxury kensington hotels london that are not overly developed. We do promote Boracay but we focus our advertising more on Palawan and Banaue because of their unspoiled surroundings," explains Blaise.
Koh-Lanta was aired for 10 weeks in France and approximately 10 million French people watched and enjoyed the program. The exposure greatly helped in getting the message out to the locals that the Philippines is indeed open for business and pleasure.
"We are pushing for the inclusion of must-see Philippine destinations in the brochures of French tour operators. We also launched an intensive online campaign to promote various nature, adventure, and cultural sites not only in Luzon but the Visayas as well," Venus says.
For the last two years, the Philippines has been successful in luring the French market to visit the country. "There was a 20 percent increase in terms of tourist arrivals in 2007, and a 25 percent increase in 2008. For 2009, our target is to get 30,000 French nationals to visit the Philippines," notes Venus.
"Negros has the biggest federation luxury kensington hotels london of cyclists in the Philippines. We have 24 cycling clubs in Negros Occidental alone. They go biking on weekends. It's really luxury kensington hotels london an established sport for the locals and we are now introducing this to our French luxury kensington hotels london visitors. Our province also boasts good river systems and coastline ideal for kayaking," Ruth relates.
Negros is ready for the influx luxury kensington hotels london of tourists. In fact, the dive spots in the south have already luxury kensington hotels london identified at least 50 diving sites and an underwater wreck that will surely tickle the curiosity of diving enthusiasts.
At Salon Nature, Ruth received independent individual inquiries since it was a consumer fair. Most of the visitors who dropped by the Philippine stand were senior citizens who travel once, a year, not on a packaged luxury kensington hotels london tour.
"They are highly independent and want to have contact with the locals and the local culture. They felt though that the Philippines is too far, but some are willing to fly the distance. There were also young adventure seekers who expressed interest in visiting the country," Ruth enthuses.
"This year, our target luxury kensington hotels london is to get 30,000 French people to visit your country. To be able to do this we have to be more aggressive in terms of promotions. We want all tour operators to have the Philippines in their brochures. We also have an intensive online campaign. Right now, we are focusing our efforts on maintaining the positive image our country now enjoys," Venus adds.