BAGUIO CITY – More accommodations here have been accredited by the Department of Tourism (DOT) as the city continues to welcome leisure travelers.

Supervising City Tourism Operations Officer Aloysius Mapalo said Wednesday 374 accommodation establishments, transient houses, and homestays have been given a certificate of accreditation or certificate of compliance by the DOT office in the Cordillera region.

The certification is proof that the establishment has been inspected and has met the basic health and safety protocols.

Mapalo noted that the number of establishments that have been issued a certification remains low compared to the more than 1,000 transient houses in different parts of the city that were operating before the pandemic.

He said together with personnel of the DOT-Cordillera, they continue to conduct ocular inspections of establishments that have applied for a certificate.

The continuous issuance of the certificate is part of government efforts to gradually revive the tourism industry, which was been heavily affected by the pandemic, and the city’s economy as well.

Data from the city tourism office show that tourist arrivals rose from about 500 by the end of April to about 1,400 by the end of May.

From June 1 to 13, the city has logged more than 2,900 tourist arrivals after the lowering of the community quarantine status of the National Capital Region (NCR) Plus bubble.

Mapalo said the bulk of the city’s tourist arrivals come from Metro Manila and its neighboring regions.

City officials have estimated that 70 percent of the tourists in Baguio come from the NCR.

Due to the increase in tourist arrivals over the past several weeks, accommodation establishments were able to reach their required 50-percent capacity based on prevailing community quarantine guidelines issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases. (PNA)