BY APRIL MARGRETTE ALNAS, BRAELL EBRADO & LISETTE DONAIRE/UM Intern
THE WORLD Travel Expo returns to Davao on May 15 -17 at Ayala Abreeza Mall, marking its fourth year of promoting domestic travel by showcasing local exhibitors in the region.
Miles Caballero, managing director of the World Travel Expo, shared that there will be around 25 exhibitors coming from Visayas and Mindanao to showcase their properties and services, featuring hotels, restaurants, airlines, traveling agencies, and tour operators.
The three-day event aims to highlight local exhibitors promoting Philippine Tourism, with participating exhibitors offering exclusive deals, promos, and packages at the upcoming event.
Among the participating exhibitors in Davao are Grand Regal Hotel, this year’s official event partner, along with Montefrio Garden Resort and other properties from Davao, Bohol, Boracay, and Cebu.
Dominic Sebastian Del Rosario of Grand Regal Hotel emphasized the importance of promoting Davao tourism, highlighting what Davao has to offer, from the scenery of the city to its islands and highlands.
“Davao has so much things to offer, not only Grand Regal, the heritage, of course, the Davaoeno spirit is what we are promoting, and we live up to that genuine experience the travelers expect from Davao,” he said
Luis Salazar from Montefrio Garden Resort shared that they aim to help Davaoenos beat the summer heat by rolling out summer promos to entice guests to come and experience the highlands of Mount Apo.
Additionally, he announced that they will be offering room rates as low as 15% on the upcoming expo.
“We advise our guests to prepare your cash and cards because you will really be tempted during the World Travel Expo because deals and promos await you,” he said
Aside from the exhibits, the expo also included activities such as a selfie challenge, a content creation challenge, a dress like Wanda challenge, and a chance to win up to P5,000 cash prize.
When asked about the recent global crisis and how they coped, Davao City’s hospitality industry shared their strategies in keeping quality service to their guests while keeping the prices stable.
Grand Regal Hotel incorporated energy-saving practices such as turning off unnecessary lights and closing some floors during downtimes, helping the establishment run smoothly without raising prices.
Similarly, Montefrio Garden Resort also focused on cutting unnecessary things to keep the same quality services without raising prices much.
“We really cut down on expenditures like electricity and gasoline. These must be compromised, but we still deliver the same results,” Salazar said.
Both establishments highlighted their commitment to keeping prices stable, especially for food and services, as keeping customers happy and maintaining trust matters more than making adjustments that could affect guest satisfaction.
