Negros Occidental‘s huge potential for culinary tourism was cited at the opening of the 4th Community Based Rural Tourism Conference in Bacolod City yesterday.

Mina Gabor, president of the International School of Sustainable Tourism, said Negros Occidental’s culinary tourism is on the right track, because its food is awesome.

Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. attributed the strength of the Negrense cuisine to the freshness of the ingredients used from the seafood, vegetables to the poultry.

He also cited the thrust of the province towards organic agriculture.

But while Negros Occidental has a lot to offer tourists, the governor said there is a need to address the needs of the Bacolod Silay Airport to allow international flights to directly land there.

The airport still needs customs and immigration personnel, and an expansion of its terminal to meet the growing number of visitors arriving in the province, he said.

He said there were more than 1 million tourists who visited Negros Occidental and Bacolod City last year, the bulk of which were domestic tourists.

The provincial government-owned Mambukal Resort in Murcia town had 350,000 guests last year, 90 percent of which were domestic tourists. The tourists visiting the resort are growing at 10 percent yearly, he added.

The governor said there is also a push for bed breakfast facilities for tourists at the community level in Negros Occidental to further boost tourism, he said.

Gabor said the ongoing conference at the Goldenfield Kundutel in Bacolod City attended by delegates from around the country is geared toward assisting communities into identifying and developing their tourism strengths.

She noted that in 2013 the world had 1.3 billion tourists, 30 percent of whom are now going to natural areas in local communities.

Today, she said, there are about eight rising stars in tourism that communities can tap into.

These are farm, heritage, culture, culinary, merchandize, drive, adventure, sports and eco tourism, she said.*CPG

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