Another unexpected tragedy bombarded the Philippines last August 23, 2010 at the

Quirino Grandstand involving an ex-policeman and hostage taker Rolando Mendoza. Mendoza

got on a Hong Thai tourist bus with 22 foreigner tourists and 3 Filipinos. After declaring his

demands by about 11am, negotiation peacefully took place which resulted to nine freed hostages

including 2 Filipinos until 4 o’clock in the afternoon. By 7pm, the situation abruptly changed

when the hostage taker saw on TV that his brother and some relatives were being held for

questioning by the local police. This led to a gun fire from the bus; which was followed by

several more thereafter. This tragedy ended when the hostage taker was seen hanging with half

of his body outside the bus door.

This event affected several parts of the Philippine industry, most especially, the Tourism

Industry. Having foreign people involved in the hostage crisis, it is clearly defined that Tourism

Industry will be the most affected one. What are the effects that this event brought to the

Philippines Tourism Industry?

 ( The country's tourism sector has started to feel the effects of last Monday's
deadly hostage-taking at the very center of Manila, with local airlines and
hotels reporting a wave of flight and booking cancellations just days after
the tragedy.

More than 500 tourists from Hong Kong and mainland China have canceled
their reservations with Philippine Airlines (PAL), the company said in a
statement issued on Thursday.

"At least 558 Manila-bound bookings were canceled," said a statement,

quoting PAL president Jaime J. Bautista.

Bookings were made by tourists from Hong Kong, Beijing, Xiamen and
other points in China, the statement added.

These flight cancellations were reported four days after eight Hong Kong
tourists were killed in a messy end to an 11-hour hostage-taking crisis in
front of the Quirino grandstand, which was widely blamed on mishandling
by the authorities undertaking negotiations with the hostage taker.
These cancellations confirmed a GMANews.TV report on Wednesday which
indicated that two groups of at least 20 Hong Kong residents have already
canceled their PAL flights scheduled for September and October.

"PAL is beginning to feel the initial impact of a Hong Kong government

advisory warning its residents to refrain from all travel to the Philippines,"
the company said.

In the Philippines, two Hong Kong and Macau-bound Filipino tourists opted
to change their destination in view of the current situation.

Despite the negative travel advisory, PAL continues to mount five daily
flights to and from the former Crown Colony.

"We're closely monitoring the situation and will decide soon whether we will
maintain or reduce flights. We share the grief and understand the Hong
Kong people's wrath. We are optimistic that fears of traveling to the
Philippines will be temporary," Bautista said.

PAL has yet to determine the financial impact of the booking cancellations
at this early stage, he said.

Negative travel advisories to the Philippines are not helping the flag carrier
which is currently struggling financially and grappling with restive workers.

"We understand that Philippine officials in Hong Kong met with the latter’s
legislative and travel councils and assured them that the Philippines is still a
safe and viable tourist destination. We are looking forward that it will soon
lead to the lifting of the travel restrictions," he added.

Meanwhile, Bautista said PAL, as the national flag carrier, will continue
with its sworn mission to promote the Philippines as a tourist destination.

"More than ever, we need to help our government in showcasing the

Philippines' best," he said.

For its part, budget carrier Cebu Pacific said several of its passengers from
Hong Kong have also asked to have their flights either rebooked or canceled.

"As of August 26, 2010, we have received rebooking and cancel requests
from less than 2 percent of the total number of passengers for the airline’s
Hong Kong routes," the company said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Travel Agencies Association (PTAA) said eight

hotels and seven resorts have reported requests for cancellations by tourists
from Hong Kong and other parts of China.
 This amounts to about 300 rooms in popular tourist destinations like Bohol,
Palawan, Boracay, Cebu, and Manila, the PTAA said.—Robert JA Basilio
Jr./JE, GMANews.TV )

 ( Manila hostage crisis has started to show effects on Philippines Tourism.

Booking Cancellations since hostage crisis has cost Philippines Tourism around
P8 million.

Majority of losses have come due to cancellations from Hong Kong and China. Over 1000
cancellations are reported just for the month of September and tourism industry is expecting
more cancellations for October as well.

Outrage in Hong Kong over the death of 8 tourists will have effect on the Philippines Tourism
industry for some time to come. People are very angry in Hong Kong, the way Hostage Crisis
was handled by the Philippines Police, therefore tourists from Hong Kong are not likely to travel
to Philippines for some time.

Travel Advisory from China ensures more trouble for the Philippines Tourism. Since china is
also a major market for Philippines, more losses are expected.

On the other hand Hong Kong will also face some heat. Filipino tourists rush to Hong Kong for
the months of September and October which is sales season in Hong Kong. Filipino rushes to
Hong Kong for shopping during this period, however due to current mood of people of Hong
Kong, Filipino are likely to skip this sales season as well.

Experts believe that Philippines Tourism will face the heat at least till November however full
recovery is expected around March 2011. )
 

 Hostage crisis costs Boracay initial P5.8-M loss

The world-famous island of Boracay, though being over 300 kilometers away
from Manila, has keenly felt the effect of Monday's bloody hostage crisis in
Manila after losing almost P5.9 million due to canceled bookings.

Radio dzBB’s Iloilo affiliate reported on Friday that the Department of Tourism
(DOT)’s regional office estimated an initial loss of P5.876 million due to canceled
hotel and resort bookings.

Edwin Trompeta, head of DOT Region 6, said the amount represented only the
bookings of some 351 guests from Hong Kong and China, from August 28 to
September 6.

It does not yet include the potential losses to tourism-dependent industries there,
including transportation agencies and vendors of food and souvenirs.

The dzBB report quoted Trompeta as saying the total initial tourism-related losses
in the region may reach P20 to 30 million.

Meanwhile, the report also said some travel and tour operators voiced fears they
may be forced to close shop if the cancellations continue.

Hong Kong on Monday night issued a black travel alert on the Philippines,
discouraging all travel there following Monday’s hostage crisis.

The Tourism Department in Western Visayas showed sympathy for the victims of
Monday’s tragedy through a candle-lighting and prayer activity at its office on
Thursday.

PAL downplays ‘domino effect’ from HK travel alert

Meanwhile, flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) downplayed the possibility of a

domino effect stemming from Hong Kong’s travel alert against the Philippines.

PAL spokeswoman Cielo Villaluna admitted that PAL is already feeling the
effects of Hong Kong’s travel advisory but said bookings from other countries are
“business as usual."

“Di naman sila nagkaroon ng (There has so far been no) domino effect. We were
in fear other countries will follow suit but so far bookings from other countries are
business as usual," she said in an interview on dwIZ radio.

Villaluna also said PAL is waiving the rebooking fees of customers from Hong
Kong who may have to change their flight schedules because of the travel alert.

“They can rebook pero without penalties, patuloy yan (They can rebook their
flights without having to pay the penalties. This policy is continuing)," she said.

Villaluna also maintained that PAL will continue its five daily flights to and from
Hong Kong despite the travel advisory. She said the cancellations covered
bookings from August 25 to the end of September.

She said PAL still considers Hong Kong a “very busy route," with many foreign
nationals flying in for business.

“There are still a lot of nationals who fly in for business and other nationalities
who also live in Hong Kong," she said. –VVP, GMANews.TV
 Philippine airlines feeling burnt of hostage crisis
 Home>>World >> Asia/Oceania

 Philippine airlines feeling burnt of hostage crisis

The Philippines' airline industry is already starting to feel the effects of Monday's hostage crisis
as the tourists who were planning to visit the country had canceled their flights.

Two of the country's largest airlines--flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) of the Lucio Tan group
of companies and Gokongwei- led Cebu Pacific--on Thursday said that the travelers are already
canceling their flights and hotel room bookings.

More than 500 people from Hong Kong and other parts of China that have booked to travel to
Manila in the next 30 days have canceled their flights, PAL said.

Likewise, Cebu Pacific said that rebooking and cancellation requests from about 2 percent of the
company's passengers to Hong Kong have already been reported.

The tourists have canceled their trips over security concerns in the Philippines after the recent
death of eight Hong Kong residents who were killed after a botched hostage rescue operation
on Monday.

"PAL is beginning to feel the initial impact of a Hong Kong government advisory warning its
residents to refrain from all travel to the Philippines," PAL president Jaime J. Bautista told
reporters Thursday.

"Hong Kong is a very important route for PAL," Bautista said, but noted that only those coming
from China have canceled their trips to the Philippines.

PAL flies to Hong Kong five times a day and corners about 6 percent of the company's revenues.

Hong Kong on Tuesday issued a warning against traveling in the Philippines at the wake of the
hostage crisis.

The Philippine government had already anticipated a backlash on the country's tourism industry
following the hostage crisis. Philippine President Benigno Aquino III had tasked the Department
of Tourism to "re-engender the confidence of tourists" to the country.

Source: Xinhua
  Travel Alerts after Hostage Drama

Hong Kong immediately issued a “black travel alert,” warning its citizens to avoid all travel to
the Philippines, and advising those already in the Philippines to return as soon as possible to
Hong Kong or take extraordinary precautions.

He Shijing, the People’s Republic of China’s Consul-General in Cebu condemns the violent
hostage drama in Manila and calls on the government to investigate the fiasco thoroughly.
Shijing compares the tragedy to “a terrorist attack.” “We strongly condemn this very rude act by
the policeman,” he tells reporters. He says he cannot blame the Hong Kong government for
issuing a travel alert to protect its citizens.

 Hostage tragedy affects Ilocos Norte tourism

abs-cbnNEWS.com
Posted at 08/27/2010 12:23 AM | Updated as of 08/27/2010 12:23 AM

LAOAG CITY, Philippines – The effects of the August 23 hostage tragedy in Manila are now
being felt in other parts of the country.

Ilocos Norte, which is a favourite destination for local and foreign visitors, is among areas in the
country that are reportedly experiencing a tourism downturn. 

The Hong Kong Express Airways informed the Laoag International Airport (LIA) on Thursday
that it is cancelling all flights heading to the province’s primary foreign gateway.

A Hong Kong Express plane arrived the same day to fetch 160 Chinese tourists who visited the
northern Philippines. 

It could be the airline company’s last flight to the Laoag airport until country’s image abroad
improves, reports said. 

A day after the bloody hostage drama, the Hong Kong government issued a "black" travel alert
on the Philippines. 

It advised all its nationals to refrain from visiting the Philippines because of the incident.

Meanwhile, a passenger aircraft from Taiwan landed at the Laoag airport Thursday afternoon. 

LIA management said no other airline has announced flight cancellations. - from a report by
Mark Magdirila, ABS-CBN News Laoag.