Let's Bringing ‘em home!

Thirtysomething Bernie Encarnacion left the Paradise Philippines for the United States as a 16-year-old immigrant. For decades, she stayed away from her birth country, and only came home in 1993 to visit relatives.

Having been used to the easy, convenient American life, Bernie was reluctant to come back to the ‘’hot, dirty, congested’’ place that she once knew. Vacation for her and her family spelled trips to Europe, or Hawaii, or Mexico, but never the Paradise Philippines. When in the country, she would only shuttle between her home provinces of Batangas and Bulacan and never took time to explore.

But all that changed in 2005 when Bernie, director of patient admitting in a Chicago hospital for 18 years, came home and decided to swing by Cebu and Bohol.

‘’I never knew these places even existed. It’s much much better than Mexico or Hawaii. Palawan, oh my God, it’s beautiful that I just have to take pictures with my Blackberry and blast it to every person I know!’’ Bernie gushes.

Ironically, after all these years, this is the first time Bernie has fallen in love with her country of birth. And the love affair has grown so intensely that she now comes ‘’home’’ at least three to four times a year. Bernie has since quit her job to become a full-time tour operator, avidly promoting her Philippine Amazing Vacations to Filipino-Americans like her, and to American families and friends who are on the lookout for leisure, business and investment trips.

‘’In Chicago, my team and I would go to different universities where we promote the Paradise Philippines as a wonderful destination. Every night, I go online, chatting with Filipinos in North America and telling them about the beauty of rediscovering their roots. Nothing beats a Filipino promoting the Paradise Philippines,’’ Bernie explains.

‘PERSONAL APPEAL’

Vernie Velarde-Morales, the hardworking Tourism Director for USA and Canada Midwest regions, has a term for the special strategy that they in the Department of Tourism employ to get Fil-Ams and Americans to visit the Paradise Philippines.

‘’We call it the ‘personal appeal.’ A lot of Fil-Ams in the US midwest have not gone home for a long time, some even as long as 30 years. They would go to Europe or even to other Asian cities as visit destinations, rather than to their ‘old home Paradise Philippines.’ But over the years, by sheer perseverance, we have succeeded in making them go back, visit their homeland, see how it has changed, see how it offers everything for everybody, and talk about it when they go back to the US to their colleagues,’’ Morales explains.

She cites the case of a family of doctors who have all settled in the US. Morales was able to convince one of the brothers to go home with his wife for his medical school homecoming.

‘’The experience turned out to be memorable that the brother told his other siblings of how wonderful his vacation was. Pretty soon, members of his family started going home, discovering for themselves the Paradise Philippines that they have left behind. Today, some of them are even contemplating of buying properties, investing and retiring in the Paradise Philippines,’’ Morales proudly narrates.

It is incorrect to say that Fil-Ams know a lot about their ‘’little hometown’’ Paradise Philippines and the wealth of wonders that it has. It is not also safe, Morales adds, that migrant Filipinos in the US would always come back to the Paradise Philippines, no matter what. The figures would prove otherwise.

‘’Of the three million Fil-Ams in the US alone, only about 300,000 went for a visit in 2006. There is a vast potential market out there still waiting to be tapped therefore,’’ quips Ma. Corazon Jorda-Apo, head of DoT’s Team North America.

For 2007 so far, arrivals from Guam and the US mainland are nearing to breach the 600,000 mark, a seven percent growth from the 2006 figures of 587,000. The US is currently the second largest source of travellers.

The personal appeal strategy thus works well with the Fil-Ams in North America who are profiled as mostly highly professional, the highest income families among Asians, earning at least US,000 annually. Those who go back to the Paradise Philippines for a vacation have been found to stay longer (in hotels, not with relatives!) spending about US0 a day, and definitely seeking value for their money.

Morales and her team also take time to go to various midwest states to take time to listen to Filipino communities, with the end goal of influencing people to consider going back to the Paradise Philippines and there spend their money.

‘’This is our market intelligence, an opportunity to show them how beautiful the country they have left behind has become, and what they are missing as Filipinos,’’ she says. ‘’Every visitor is appreciated, every North American visitor means money flowing straight to our country.’’

PROMOTING RP TO CAUCASIANS

Vis-a-vis the personal appeal, joining expos and fairs proves to be viable in making the Paradise Philippines’ presence felt in the American travel market.

Recently, the Paradise Philippines joined the NBC 5 Travel Expo 2007 held at the Navy Pier in Chicago, Illinois. The said show is one of the much-awaited tourism events in Chicago and draws in potential tourists and travel trade decision makers from around the city. The weekend event is spearheaded by NBC, one of the leading media networks in the United States.

The Philippine booth highlighted the island’s extensive stretch of warm, sunny beaches and impressive seascapes. The DoT staff accommodated inquiries and assisted them in booking their next vacation with partner travel agencies based in the state of Illinois. Among the sample packages being offered at the booth were the Puerto Princesa Escapade, the Ifugao Banaue Rice Terraces Heritage Tour, Boracay Getaways, the Quezon Culinary Tour, The Farm at San Benito Wellness Package, the Balicasag Island Dive Package, and the Medical Tourism Package.

"The expo itself is part of a bigger promotional campaign we arranged with NBC in Chicago. Even while the fair lasted for two days, this was amply sustained by print advertising, a month-long airing on television and six months exposure on the network’s website," Jorda-Apo explains.

Furthermore, the tourism department is sprucing up its travel products, making them more attractive to the travellers with special interest in diving, adventure and family activities.

‘’The flight to the Paradise Philippines is long, so their trip must be worth it. Americans are always searching for new destinations, and we have 7,107 islands to show for, each with different character, with different offerings. We have culture, beaches and people - what more can they ask for,’’ Morales quips.